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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. staff — employees
  3. tear — from crying
  4. march — the month
  5. march — the month
  6. tube — the underground
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. staff — employees
  9. field — for sport
  10. field — a subject
  11. face — part of the head
  12. tear — to rip
  13. staff — a stick
  14. face — to point toward
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. field — farmland
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. face — to confront
  20. pitch — completely
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. march — music

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