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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. capital — a city
  4. roll — a list
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. tear — to rip
  8. present — the time now
  9. band — a ring
  10. band — a music group
  11. pound — a weight
  12. capital — money
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. present — there
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. roll — a cake
  21. present — a gift
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. tear — from crying
  24. temple — side of the head

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