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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. rule — government
  4. tear — from crying
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. rule — a law
  7. wound — an injury
  8. tear — to rip
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. board — a committee
  11. tear — from crying
  12. board — to get on
  13. march — music
  14. mate — a partner
  15. march — the month
  16. mate — to breed
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. mate — a friend
  19. march — the month
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. board — a flat piece

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