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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: saw · bear · scale · capital · land · bowl · season · tear

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. land — ground
  3. bear — the animal
  4. scale — in music
  5. saw — the tool
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. scale — size or range
  11. land — to come down
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. saw — the tool
  14. tear — to rip
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. season — of the year
  17. bear — the animal
  18. capital — a city
  19. season — in sport
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. capital — money
  22. land — a country
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. bear — to put up with

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