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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. root — the cause
  4. march — music
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. last — finally
  7. root — of a word
  8. last — final
  9. tear — from crying
  10. root — of a plant
  11. bound — certain
  12. march — the month
  13. file — a line of people
  14. file — a tool
  15. file — a document
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — to rip
  19. object — an aim
  20. bound — tied together
  21. bound — obliged
  22. march — the month
  23. object — a thing
  24. last — to go on

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