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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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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 · bear · calf · band · dip · tear · wind · chest

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. bear — the animal
  3. chest — a box
  4. dip — to sink
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. ground — crushed
  8. ground — a position
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. wind — moving air
  11. band — a music group
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. tear — from crying
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. bear — the animal
  18. ground — the earth
  19. band — a ring
  20. chest — of your body
  21. tear — from crying
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — to turn a key

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