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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 124 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. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. race — humankind
  3. drill — the tool
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. drill — a practice
  6. tear — to rip
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. drill — army training
  11. swing — to play on
  12. rule — a law
  13. tear — from crying
  14. plane — a tool
  15. race — a contest
  16. rule — government
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. race — the arms race
  19. swing — music
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. swing — in golf
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. trunk — of a car

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