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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: clip · bass · key · march · rock · tear · sharp · fine

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bass — the fish
  3. tear — from crying
  4. rock — music
  5. key — in music
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. march — music
  8. clip — a video
  9. sharp — clever
  10. rock — a stone
  11. tear — to rip
  12. key — the most important part
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. fine — all right
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. march — the month
  17. march — the month
  18. clip — to cut
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. key — for a lock
  21. fine — high quality
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. bass — low music
  24. clip — for paper

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