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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: rash · kid · tear · squash · mug · present · wound · wake

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. present — there
  3. tear — from crying
  4. kid — child
  5. rash — a series
  6. mug — to rob
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. mug — a cup
  9. squash — the sport
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wound — an injury
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. squash — to crush
  14. present — the time now
  15. present — a gift
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. kid — to tease
  20. wake — a trail
  21. mug — a face
  22. tear — from crying
  23. rash — hasty
  24. wound — an injury

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