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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: land · rash · mine · spell · tear · bark · wake · coach

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. rash — a series
  3. land — to come down
  4. spell — magic
  5. bark — to shout
  6. land — ground
  7. wake — a trail
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — from crying
  13. land — a country
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. mine — for digging
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. spell — letters
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. spell — a short time
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. rash — hasty
  24. mine — belonging to me

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