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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. tear — to rip
  4. chip — for betting
  5. root — of a word
  6. band — a music group
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. bear — the animal
  9. root — the cause
  10. chip — to eat
  11. band — a ring
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bear — the animal
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. chest — a box
  19. chest — of your body
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. perch — the fish
  24. root — of a plant

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