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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. object — an aim
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. spell — letters
  5. rule — government
  6. prune — to trim
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. rule — a law
  9. spell — a short time
  10. ball — a great time
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. tear — from crying
  14. wake — a trail
  15. object — a thing
  16. prune — to trim
  17. bear — the animal
  18. object — to protest
  19. ball — a dance
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. tear — to rip
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. bear — the animal
  24. spell — magic

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