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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tear — to rip
  3. bound — certain
  4. last — to go on
  5. tube — a container
  6. bear — the animal
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. tube — the underground
  10. bark — to shout
  11. tear — from crying
  12. bound — tied together
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. bear — the animal
  15. kid — child
  16. last — finally
  17. kid — to tease
  18. bound — obliged
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. last — final
  21. hand — help
  22. hand — in cards
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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