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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. rash — a series
  3. march — music
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. ground — crushed
  7. march — the month
  8. tear — to rip
  9. ground — a position
  10. march — the month
  11. kick — in football
  12. ground — the earth
  13. tear — from crying
  14. rash — hasty
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. mine — for digging
  18. club — for dancing
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. tear — from crying
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. club — a group
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. club — for golf

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