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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. wound — an injury
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. rule — a law
  5. last — to go on
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. march — the month
  9. stock — goods
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. rule — government
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — from crying
  15. stock — shares
  16. march — music
  17. rush — hurry
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. last — final
  20. wound — an injury
  21. bulb — for light
  22. march — the month
  23. tear — to rip
  24. bulb — for light

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