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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 116 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: tear · bank · wind · wake · fine · chip · hide · court

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. tear — from crying
  3. wind — moving air
  4. court — of law
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. bank — of a river
  7. court — for sport
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. bank — for money
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. chip — for betting
  12. wake — a trail
  13. bank — for money
  14. chip — to eat
  15. court — of a king
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. tear — to rip
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. tear — from crying
  22. fine — all right
  23. fine — high quality
  24. fine — a penalty

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