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

Word bank: lean · pit · lash · perch · rest · march · tear · band

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. pit — a hole
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. band — a music group
  6. band — a ring
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. lean — thin
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. tear — to rip
  11. lean — to bend
  12. march — the month
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. pit — in a race
  15. rest — what's left
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. perch — the fish
  18. tear — from crying
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. march — music
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rest — a break
  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