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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: bear · stand · tear · wind · mark · dip · spring · straw

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. tear — to rip
  3. stand — to bear
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. tear — from crying
  7. spring — a coil
  8. mark — a grade
  9. bear — the animal
  10. mark — a trace
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. dip — to sink
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. bear — the animal
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. wind — moving air
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. wind — moving air
  20. spring — the season
  21. spring — of water
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. tear — from crying
  24. dip — a sauce

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