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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: lie · scale · chest · rush · wind · tear · wound · charge

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chest — a box
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. tear — to rip
  6. chest — of your body
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rush — hurry
  9. chest — of your body
  10. wound — an injury
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. charge — in control
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. wound — an injury
  15. tear — from crying
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. charge — electricity
  19. lie — to recline
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. scale — in music
  22. scale — size or range
  23. charge — a price
  24. rush — a thrill

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