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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: wound · racket · straw · present · object · tear

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. tear — from crying
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. wound — an injury
  7. object — a thing
  8. present — there
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. tear — to rip
  11. tear — from crying
  12. present — a gift
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. wound — an injury
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. object — an aim
  18. object — to protest

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