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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. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. march — the month
  3. tear — to rip
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tear — from crying
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. rock — music
  9. press — to push
  10. chest — a box
  11. press — a publisher
  12. press — newspapers
  13. march — the month
  14. march — music
  15. bark — to shout
  16. tube — a container
  17. rock — a stone
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. chest — of your body
  20. wound — an injury
  21. tube — the underground
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. chest — of your body

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