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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. bear — the animal
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. saw — the tool
  5. wound — an injury
  6. field — for sport
  7. tear — from crying
  8. field — a subject
  9. wind — moving air
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. tear — from crying
  12. field — farmland
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wound — an injury
  15. mate — a partner
  16. wind — moving air
  17. bear — the animal
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. saw — the tool
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. mate — to breed
  22. perch — the fish
  23. mate — a friend
  24. tear — to rip

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