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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 cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. pop — music
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. pop — to visit
  7. tear — from crying
  8. pop — soda
  9. band — a music group
  10. dip — to sink
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. race — humankind
  13. band — a ring
  14. rule — a law
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. race — the arms race
  19. race — a contest
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. rule — government
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. tear — to rip
  24. sharp — clever

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