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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: straw · roll · tear · leaves · cap · racket

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. tear — to rip
  5. cap — a hat
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. tear — from crying
  8. cap — a lid
  9. cap — of ice
  10. roll — a list
  11. tear — from crying
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. roll — a cake
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. racket — a loud noise

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