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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: bear · pass · bat · bark · tear · ball · wound · mouse

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. bat — the animal
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. tear — from crying
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. ball — a great time
  10. bear — the animal
  11. ball — a dance
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. wound — an injury
  14. pass — a permit
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. bark — to shout
  19. bear — the animal
  20. tear — to rip
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. tear — from crying
  24. wound — an injury

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