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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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Word bank
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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 belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. tear — to rip
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. tear — from crying
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. saw — the tool
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. chair — a leader
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. club — for golf
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. march — music
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. march — the month
  17. fork — in a road
  18. saw — the tool
  19. club — for dancing
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. tear — from crying
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. march — the month

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