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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  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. march — the month
  2. spell — magic
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. tear — to rip
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. march — music
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. bat — the animal
  10. tear — from crying
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. march — the month
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. bear — the animal
  17. tear — from crying
  18. spell — letters
  19. sharp — clever
  20. bear — the animal
  21. spell — a short time
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. safe — out of danger
  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