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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: leaves · plane · wound · bat · wind · tear · present · mate

  1. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. present — the time now
  4. present — there
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. mate — to breed
  9. tear — from crying
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. bat — the animal
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — moving air
  15. tear — to rip
  16. tear — from crying
  17. mate — a partner
  18. wound — an injury
  19. present — a gift
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wound — an injury
  24. mate — a friend

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