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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. press — to push
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. band — a music group
  7. march — the month
  8. bear — the animal
  9. band — a ring
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. bass — the fish
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. press — a publisher
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — to rip
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. bear — the animal
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. bass — low music
  21. press — newspapers
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. march — the month
  24. march — music

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