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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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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. pop — to visit
  3. bear — the animal
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. spell — letters
  9. pop — soda
  10. prune — to trim
  11. tear — to rip
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. tear — from crying
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. rush — hurry
  18. pop — music
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. spell — a short time
  22. bear — the animal
  23. spell — magic
  24. rush — a thrill

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