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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: fall · bore · swing · tear · lean · hide · nail · march

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. tear — to rip
  3. swing — in golf
  4. march — the month
  5. swing — to play on
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. fall — to drop
  8. tear — from crying
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. swing — music
  13. lean — thin
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. bore — to tire
  16. tear — from crying
  17. nail — on a finger
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fall — the season
  20. lean — to bend
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. bore — to drill
  23. march — music
  24. bore — gave birth

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