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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 116 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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — from crying
  4. content — the amount
  5. swing — music
  6. drill — army training
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. drill — a practice
  9. drill — the tool
  10. swing — to play on
  11. craft — boats
  12. plane — a tool
  13. mate — a friend
  14. mate — to breed
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. rash — hasty
  18. rash — a series
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. tear — to rip
  21. craft — a skill
  22. swing — in golf
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. content — happy

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