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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. swing — to play on
  4. tear — from crying
  5. last — finally
  6. swing — music
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. last — final
  9. prune — to trim
  10. present — there
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. rush — hurry
  13. march — music
  14. prune — to trim
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. tear — to rip
  18. present — the time now
  19. tear — from crying
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. march — the month
  22. present — a gift
  23. march — the month
  24. swing — in golf

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