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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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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: charge · tear · hand · bank · snap · straw · pit · row

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. bank — for money
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. hand — in cards
  6. charge — electricity
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. pit — a hole
  10. charge — in control
  11. charge — a price
  12. hand — help
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. snap — to click
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. row — to paddle
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. bank — of a river
  19. row — a line
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — to rip
  22. bank — for money
  23. pit — in a race
  24. row — a quarrel

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