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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: tear · rest · bear · hand · mine · ground · suit · current

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. When will it ________________ you to start?
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  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. hand — help
  2. ground — the earth
  3. bear — the animal
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. current — electric
  6. hand — in cards
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. rest — what's left
  9. suit — clothes
  10. tear — to rip
  11. current — of water
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. suit — to fit
  14. ground — a position
  15. mine — for digging
  16. current — happening now
  17. ground — crushed
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bear — the animal
  21. suit — in cards
  22. rest — a break
  23. rest — what's left
  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