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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: racket · wave · tear · key · wind · wound · kid · press

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. press — to push
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. press — a publisher
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. press — newspapers
  12. kid — to tease
  13. key — for a lock
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. tear — from crying
  17. tear — to rip
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. key — the most important part
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wind — moving air
  22. key — in music
  23. tear — from crying
  24. kid — child

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