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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 120 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: wind · wound · perch · bark · racket · lie · mine · tear

  1. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — a dog's sound
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. tear — from crying
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. bark — to shout
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — moving air
  9. mine — for digging
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. wound — an injury
  13. tear — from crying
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. lie — to recline
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. perch — the fish
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. wound — an injury
  24. tear — to rip

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