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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. tear — from crying
  3. march — music
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. ground — a position
  6. march — the month
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. race — the arms race
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. bore — to tire
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. race — humankind
  15. march — the month
  16. ground — crushed
  17. tear — from crying
  18. race — a contest
  19. ground — the earth
  20. tear — to rip
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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