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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: ground · hide · tear · kid · track · coach · pitcher · present

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. present — there
  3. tear — from crying
  4. track — a song
  5. present — the time now
  6. ground — crushed
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. track — to keep track
  11. tear — to rip
  12. kid — to tease
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. track — a path
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. ground — the earth
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. ground — a position
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. present — a gift
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. kid — child

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