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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: cap · object · squash · trunk · straw · tear · bear · file

  1. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. squash — to crush
  3. tear — to rip
  4. bear — the animal
  5. file — a line of people
  6. object — to protest
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. tear — from crying
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. tear — from crying
  13. file — a document
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. cap — a hat
  16. object — a thing
  17. squash — the sport
  18. cap — a lid
  19. cap — of ice
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. object — an aim
  24. bear — the animal

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