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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: tear · rush · safe · wound · wind · bulb · firm · land

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. land — a country
  4. tear — from crying
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. rush — hurry
  9. land — to come down
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. firm — a company
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bulb — for light
  14. wind — moving air
  15. tear — to rip
  16. rush — to hurry
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — an injury
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. firm — steady
  23. firm — decided
  24. wind — moving air

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