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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. march — music
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — to rip
  7. track — a path
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. last — final
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. last — to go on
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. bat — the animal
  15. track — a song
  16. march — the month
  17. last — finally
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. track — to keep track
  21. march — the month
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. mine — for digging
  24. bowl — to roll

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