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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 need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. charge — electricity
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. row — to paddle
  7. charge — in control
  8. can — a tin
  9. charge — a price
  10. march — music
  11. march — the month
  12. ground — the earth
  13. march — the month
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. sharp — clever
  16. row — a line
  17. ground — crushed
  18. drill — a practice
  19. can — to be able to
  20. drill — army training
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. can — a tin
  23. tear — from crying
  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