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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. court — of a king
  3. march — the month
  4. rash — hasty
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. key — for a lock
  7. march — music
  8. march — the month
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. can — a tin
  12. court — for sport
  13. tear — to rip
  14. stock — shares
  15. key — in music
  16. vault — a safe
  17. can — to be able to
  18. key — the most important part
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. court — of law
  21. rash — a series
  22. tear — from crying
  23. can — a tin
  24. stock — goods

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