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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. pound — a weight
  5. present — there
  6. tear — to rip
  7. last — finally
  8. tear — from crying
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. fork — in a road
  11. present — a gift
  12. sharp — clever
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. lie — to recline
  20. last — final
  21. present — the time now
  22. chair — a leader
  23. tear — from crying
  24. last — to go on

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