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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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. march — music
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. face — part of the head
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. face — to point toward
  9. march — the month
  10. degree — temperature
  11. degree — an amount
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. degree — from a university
  14. march — the month
  15. fork — in a road
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — to rip
  18. band — a music group
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. face — to confront
  21. band — a ring
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — an injury
  24. ruler — a monarch

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