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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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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: firm · lean · deal · tear · land · row · bore · hand

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. bore — to tire
  3. land — to come down
  4. firm — decided
  5. tear — to rip
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. lean — thin
  8. row — a line
  9. lean — to bend
  10. land — a country
  11. tear — from crying
  12. firm — steady
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. hand — in cards
  15. firm — a company
  16. deal — to handle
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. land — ground
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bore — to drill
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. hand — help
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. row — to paddle

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