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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: tear · lean · tube · stem · wound · straw · bound · pit

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. tube — a container
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. tear — from crying
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. wound — an injury
  8. lean — thin
  9. pit — a hole
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. bound — tied together
  14. lean — to bend
  15. tear — to rip
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. wound — an injury
  18. stem — to come from
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. tube — the underground
  22. tear — from crying
  23. bound — certain
  24. pit — in a race

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