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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 116 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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. tear — from crying
  3. cap — a lid
  4. cap — a hat
  5. tear — from crying
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. club — for dancing
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — the animal
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. cap — of ice
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. club — for golf
  15. club — a group
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. tear — to rip
  18. straw — a straw man

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