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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. tear — from crying
  4. ground — the earth
  5. mate — a partner
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. spring — a coil
  8. bear — the animal
  9. mate — to breed
  10. ground — crushed
  11. band — a ring
  12. band — a music group
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. ground — a position
  15. bear — the animal
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. spring — the season
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. mate — a friend
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. spring — of water
  23. tear — to rip
  24. tear — from crying

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