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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. mark — a grade
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. file — a document
  6. file — a line of people
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. mine — for digging
  9. tear — from crying
  10. march — music
  11. march — the month
  12. saw — the tool
  13. ground — the earth
  14. present — there
  15. present — a gift
  16. march — the month
  17. ground — crushed
  18. mark — a trace
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. tear — from crying
  21. present — the time now
  22. saw — the tool
  23. file — a tool
  24. ground — a position

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