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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 · board · wind · hand · object · content · wave · tube

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. wind — moving air
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. tube — a container
  5. content — happy
  6. hand — in cards
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. board — to get on
  9. object — to protest
  10. board — a committee
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. content — the amount
  13. tube — the underground
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. tear — from crying
  18. object — an aim
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. hand — help
  21. object — a thing
  22. wind — moving air
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. tear — from crying

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