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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tube — a container
  3. tube — the underground
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. ground — the earth
  6. tear — from crying
  7. ground — crushed
  8. bound — certain
  9. season — in sport
  10. bound — tied together
  11. season — of the year
  12. lean — thin
  13. bound — obliged
  14. lean — to bend
  15. tear — to rip
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. capital — a city
  19. ground — a position
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. capital — money
  24. lean — to rest against

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