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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: can · capital · tear · chest · bark · wind

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. chest — a box
  3. capital — money
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — to rip
  7. can — to be able to
  8. capital — a city
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. chest — of your body
  13. can — a tin
  14. can — a tin
  15. bark — to shout
  16. chest — of your body
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. tear — from crying

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