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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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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: hide · wake · mine · spell · tear · last · mate · pound

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. tear — from crying
  4. mate — a partner
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. spell — letters
  7. last — finally
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. mine — for digging
  10. mate — to breed
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. last — to go on
  13. tear — to rip
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. wake — a trail
  16. tear — from crying
  17. spell — a short time
  18. spell — magic
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. pound — a weight
  21. last — final
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. mate — a friend

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