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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: tear · lean · object · racket · roll · race · present · hand

  1. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  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. racket — a loud noise
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. object — an aim
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. race — a contest
  6. roll — a list
  7. tear — from crying
  8. lean — to bend
  9. present — a gift
  10. lean — thin
  11. hand — help
  12. object — to protest
  13. race — humankind
  14. object — a thing
  15. tear — to rip
  16. roll — a cake
  17. present — the time now
  18. present — there
  19. hand — in cards
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. race — the arms race
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. tear — from crying
  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