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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. scale — size or range
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. race — a contest
  7. net — after costs
  8. net — in sport
  9. scale — in music
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. net — for catching
  12. stock — a soup base
  13. tear — from crying
  14. cue — a hint
  15. race — the arms race
  16. kick — in football
  17. cue — for pool
  18. cue — a signal
  19. tear — to rip
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. stock — goods
  22. stock — shares
  23. race — humankind
  24. scale — for weighing

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