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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. drill — the tool
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. kid — child
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. tear — from crying
  8. tear — to rip
  9. last — to go on
  10. lean — to bend
  11. kid — to tease
  12. date — the fruit
  13. rash — hasty
  14. last — final
  15. tear — from crying
  16. drill — a practice
  17. rash — a series
  18. drill — army training
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. lean — thin
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. date — on the calendar

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