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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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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: ruler · squash · tube · lean · wake · tear · rush · bear

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. squash — to crush
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. tube — a container
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. bear — the animal
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. tube — the underground
  15. bear — the animal
  16. squash — the sport
  17. lean — to bend
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. wake — a trail
  20. rush — hurry
  21. tear — from crying
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. tear — from crying
  24. lean — thin

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