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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: leaves · stand · bear · degree · tear · rest

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. degree — an amount
  3. tear — from crying
  4. rest — what's left
  5. bear — the animal
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bear — the animal
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. rest — what's left
  10. stand — to bear
  11. degree — from a university
  12. rest — a break
  13. tear — to rip
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. degree — temperature
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. leaves — lets stay

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