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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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Word bank
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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: perch · toast · tear · ground · wind · swing

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. ground — the earth
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. ground — a position
  5. swing — music
  6. tear — from crying
  7. toast — bread
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. perch — the fish
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. swing — to play on
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — moving air
  15. ground — crushed
  16. swing — in golf
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. tear — to rip

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