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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 · field · rush · spring · kid · key · cabinet · jam

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tear — to rip
  3. key — the most important part
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. field — farmland
  6. field — for sport
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. spring — of water
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. key — for a lock
  11. key — in music
  12. spring — the season
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. spring — a coil
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. field — a subject
  19. kid — child
  20. rush — hurry
  21. tear — from crying
  22. kid — to tease
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. rush — a thrill

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