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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. tear — to rip
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. hand — help
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. bulb — for light
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. perch — the fish
  10. tear — from crying
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. bulb — for light
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. deal — to handle
  18. hand — in cards
  19. band — a music group
  20. tear — from crying
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. band — a ring
  24. perch — for a bird

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