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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 · pass · bore · rush · bound · clip · bark · band

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. bound — certain
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. clip — for paper
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. bore — to tire
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. band — a ring
  10. bound — tied together
  11. clip — to cut
  12. tear — from crying
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. bound — obliged
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. bore — to drill
  17. tear — to rip
  18. clip — a video
  19. rush — hurry
  20. bark — to shout
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. band — a music group
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. pass — a permit

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