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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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Word bank
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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: ball · tear · spell · shower · march · object · arm · pop

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. object — a thing
  3. tear — from crying
  4. object — to protest
  5. shower — to wash
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. ball — a great time
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. object — an aim
  10. march — the month
  11. march — the month
  12. pop — music
  13. pop — to visit
  14. march — music
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. spell — magic
  18. ball — a dance
  19. spell — a short time
  20. shower — rain
  21. tear — to rip
  22. pop — soda
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. spell — letters

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