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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. fall — to drop
  3. tear — from crying
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. branch — a division
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. band — a music group
  10. mark — a grade
  11. mark — a trace
  12. march — the month
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. tear — from crying
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. march — music
  19. fall — the season
  20. tear — to rip
  21. march — the month
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. fall — to drop
  24. mark — to pay attention

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