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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. cold — an illness
  4. scale — size or range
  5. suit — in cards
  6. cold — not warm
  7. season — of the year
  8. last — final
  9. last — to go on
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. suit — to fit
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. suit — clothes
  14. rule — a law
  15. tear — from crying
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. season — in sport
  18. rule — government
  19. mug — a face
  20. scale — in music
  21. mug — to rob
  22. mug — a cup
  23. tear — to rip
  24. last — finally

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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