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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. wound — an injury
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. spring — a coil
  8. sharp — clever
  9. spring — of water
  10. tear — to rip
  11. tear — from crying
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. wound — an injury
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. toast — bread
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. tear — from crying
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. spring — the season
  24. fan — to cool the air

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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