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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. march — music
  3. tear — from crying
  4. plane — a tool
  5. tear — from crying
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. tear — to rip
  9. bore — to drill
  10. land — to come down
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. wind — moving air
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. march — the month
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. wind — moving air
  19. last — finally
  20. land — ground
  21. last — final
  22. march — the month
  23. land — a country
  24. last — to go on

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