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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. club — for dancing
  3. club — for golf
  4. mine — for digging
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. tear — to rip
  7. club — a group
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. wound — an injury
  11. board — to get on
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. board — a committee
  14. wound — an injury
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. tear — from crying
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. wake — a trail
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bear — the animal
  23. tear — from crying
  24. board — a flat piece

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