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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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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 cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. net — after costs
  3. march — music
  4. net — for catching
  5. face — part of the head
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. tear — from crying
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. bear — the animal
  10. tear — to rip
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. capital — a city
  14. bear — the animal
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. net — in sport
  17. kick — in football
  18. face — to point toward
  19. capital — money
  20. march — the month
  21. snap — to click
  22. march — the month
  23. face — to confront
  24. capital — a big letter

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