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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. ball — a great time
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. cold — not warm
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. present — a gift
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. mug — a face
  12. present — the time now
  13. mug — a cup
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. tear — to rip
  16. mug — to rob
  17. present — there
  18. tear — from crying
  19. rest — a break
  20. rest — what's left
  21. cold — an illness
  22. rest — what's left
  23. ball — a dance
  24. coach — a trainer

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