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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. tear — from crying
  5. drill — the tool
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. march — the month
  8. march — music
  9. drill — army training
  10. present — the time now
  11. drill — a practice
  12. march — the month
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. staff — a stick
  15. present — a gift
  16. present — there
  17. staff — employees
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. tear — from crying
  20. staff — employees
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. hide — animal skin

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