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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. branch — a division
  3. rest — what's left
  4. spring — the season
  5. rest — a break
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. last — final
  8. tear — to rip
  9. spring — of water
  10. last — to go on
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. last — finally
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. spring — a coil
  15. charge — electricity
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. rest — what's left
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. charge — a price
  20. charge — in control
  21. ground — the earth
  22. ground — a position
  23. ground — crushed
  24. tear — from crying

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