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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: bear · file · toast · coach · jam · tear · wound · band

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. tear — from crying
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. bear — the animal
  6. wound — an injury
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. band — a music group
  10. tear — from crying
  11. tear — to rip
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. file — a line of people
  14. bear — the animal
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. file — a tool
  17. toast — bread
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. file — a document
  23. jam — to spread on bread
  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