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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: wound · chest · staff · pass · mark · scale · tear · bear

  1. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. wound — an injury
  3. staff — employees
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. tear — to rip
  6. chest — of your body
  7. staff — employees
  8. bear — the animal
  9. scale — in music
  10. chest — a box
  11. pass — to spend time
  12. wound — an injury
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — from crying
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. staff — a stick
  17. pass — a permit
  18. chest — of your body
  19. scale — size or range
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. mark — a trace
  23. bear — the animal
  24. scale — for weighing

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