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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: chest · wax · present · tear · hide · craft

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  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. craft — boats
  3. chest — of your body
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. present — there
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. present — the time now
  8. tear — from crying
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. chest — a box
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. present — a gift
  14. wax — to grow
  15. craft — a skill
  16. chest — of your body
  17. hide — animal skin
  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