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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 120 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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. tear — from crying
  7. game — a match
  8. tear — to rip
  9. game — wild animals
  10. tear — from crying
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. march — the month
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rest — a break
  17. object — an aim
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. march — the month
  20. object — a thing
  21. rash — a series
  22. march — music
  23. object — to protest
  24. rash — hasty

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