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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: wind · content · lean · pound · racket · bear · field · tear

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. content — the amount
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. wind — moving air
  7. lean — to bend
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. pound — a weight
  10. tear — from crying
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. content — happy
  13. tear — to rip
  14. field — for sport
  15. lean — thin
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bear — the animal
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. wind — moving air
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. field — farmland
  23. field — a subject
  24. racket — for tennis

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