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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tear — from crying
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. band — a music group
  5. band — a ring
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. bear — the animal
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. snap — to click
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. rest — what's left
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. tear — to rip
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rest — a break
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. bear — the animal
  21. shower — rain
  22. shower — to wash
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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