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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. tear — to rip
  3. drill — army training
  4. key — for a lock
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. sharp — clever
  7. drill — the tool
  8. march — the month
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mine — for digging
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. key — in music
  13. spring — of water
  14. tear — from crying
  15. drill — a practice
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. key — the most important part
  19. march — music
  20. march — the month
  21. spring — a coil
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. spring — the season
  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