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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: rash · field · wind · snap · tear · cabinet · bear · bowl

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. field — a subject
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. tear — to rip
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. tear — from crying
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. field — for sport
  12. tear — from crying
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. snap — to click
  18. rash — hasty
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. field — farmland
  21. rash — a series
  22. bear — the animal
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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