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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 120 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: wake · wave · mark · kid · stand · tear · bark · land

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. mark — a grade
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. stand — to bear
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. land — ground
  13. land — a country
  14. mark — a trace
  15. wake — a trail
  16. kid — to tease
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bark — to shout
  20. kid — child
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. land — to come down
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. tear — to rip

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