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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. race — a contest
  3. race — humankind
  4. charge — a price
  5. last — final
  6. tear — from crying
  7. present — a gift
  8. march — music
  9. tear — from crying
  10. last — to go on
  11. present — the time now
  12. stock — shares
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. charge — electricity
  15. race — the arms race
  16. tear — to rip
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. last — finally
  19. stock — goods
  20. shower — to wash
  21. present — there
  22. march — the month
  23. shower — rain
  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