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

Word bank: wind · stand · dip · tear · bat · present

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. tear — to rip
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. tear — from crying
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. wind — moving air
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. dip — to sink
  14. stand — to bear
  15. wind — moving air
  16. present — a gift
  17. present — the time now
  18. dip — to dunk

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