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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 124 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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. race — humankind
  3. tear — from crying
  4. last — to go on
  5. last — finally
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. saw — the tool
  9. craft — a skill
  10. band — a ring
  11. band — a music group
  12. race — the arms race
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. race — a contest
  17. craft — boats
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. last — final
  20. bulb — for light
  21. saw — the tool
  22. date — the fruit
  23. tear — from crying
  24. bulb — for light

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