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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: fan · wind · tear · rash · stand · wound · perch · mouse

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. wound — an injury
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. stand — to bear
  5. rash — a series
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. tear — to rip
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. wound — an injury
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. tear — from crying
  19. wind — moving air
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. perch — the fish
  24. mouse — 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