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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 120 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. can — a tin
  3. march — music
  4. club — for golf
  5. can — to be able to
  6. band — a ring
  7. present — there
  8. march — the month
  9. present — the time now
  10. club — a group
  11. march — the month
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. present — a gift
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. rash — a series
  17. band — a music group
  18. tear — to rip
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. can — a tin
  21. rash — hasty
  22. stand — to bear
  23. club — for dancing
  24. tear — from crying

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com