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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: tear · wind · perch · ball · wake · kid · season · march

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. season — in sport
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. ball — a great time
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. kid — child
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. wind — moving air
  11. ball — a dance
  12. march — music
  13. march — the month
  14. wind — moving air
  15. perch — the fish
  16. tear — to rip
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying
  19. march — the month
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. season — of the year
  24. kid — to tease

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