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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: ground · sharp · tear · lash · fall · band · wind · fine

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  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. band — a rubber band
  2. band — a music group
  3. ground — the earth
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. fine — high quality
  6. tear — to rip
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. ground — crushed
  9. fall — the season
  10. wind — moving air
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. wind — moving air
  13. ground — a position
  14. band — a ring
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. fall — to drop
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. tear — from crying
  19. fall — to drop
  20. sharp — clever
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. fine — all right
  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