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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. kick — in football
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — from crying
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. object — an aim
  7. bound — certain
  8. march — music
  9. race — a contest
  10. march — the month
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. march — the month
  13. race — humankind
  14. hand — in cards
  15. bound — obliged
  16. hand — help
  17. bound — tied together
  18. tear — to rip
  19. object — a thing
  20. race — the arms race
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. row — a line
  23. object — to protest
  24. row — to paddle

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