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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. tear — from crying
  3. spring — the season
  4. press — to push
  5. tear — from crying
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. staff — employees
  9. squash — to crush
  10. squash — the sport
  11. march — the month
  12. tear — to rip
  13. staff — a stick
  14. spring — of water
  15. press — newspapers
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. press — a publisher
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. spring — a coil
  20. march — music
  21. staff — employees
  22. band — a music group
  23. band — a ring
  24. band — a rubber band

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