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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 120 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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. tear — to rip
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. mate — a partner
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. bore — to drill
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. tear — from crying
  13. shower — to wash
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. march — music
  16. pitch — completely
  17. mate — a friend
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. march — the month
  20. shower — rain
  21. march — the month
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. mate — to breed
  24. bore — to tire

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