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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. march — the month
  3. cue — a signal
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. object — to protest
  6. object — an aim
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. cue — a hint
  9. wind — moving air
  10. scale — size or range
  11. march — music
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. tear — from crying
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. march — the month
  16. cue — for pool
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. scale — in music
  19. object — a thing
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. wind — moving air
  24. tear — to rip

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