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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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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: craft · bound · racket · mug · tear · cap · object · wake

  1. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. bound — obliged
  3. bound — tied together
  4. tear — to rip
  5. craft — boats
  6. object — to protest
  7. tear — from crying
  8. cap — a hat
  9. mug — a cup
  10. cap — a lid
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. object — an aim
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. mug — a face
  15. cap — of ice
  16. bound — certain
  17. craft — a skill
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. tear — from crying
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. wake — a trail
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. mug — to rob
  24. wake — before a funeral

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