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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: lash · court · scale · tear · bank · stand · race · bear

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. tear — from crying
  3. race — humankind
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. tear — from crying
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. court — of a king
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. court — of law
  11. bear — the animal
  12. scale — size or range
  13. scale — in music
  14. stand — to bear
  15. race — a contest
  16. bank — for money
  17. race — the arms race
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. court — for sport
  21. bank — for money
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. tear — to rip
  24. bear — the animal

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