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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. club — for golf
  4. club — for dancing
  5. kick — in football
  6. sharp — clever
  7. stock — shares
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. tear — from crying
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. stock — goods
  12. fine — all right
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. fine — high quality
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. bore — to drill
  17. hand — in cards
  18. bore — to tire
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. tear — to rip
  22. club — a group
  23. hand — help
  24. stock — a soup base

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