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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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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: wake · plane · bear · tear · net · squash · clip · mouse

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. clip — for paper
  3. clip — a video
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. net — after costs
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. net — for catching
  10. bear — the animal
  11. squash — to crush
  12. clip — to cut
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. tear — from crying
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. wake — a trail
  18. plane — a tool
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. net — in sport
  21. tear — from crying
  22. squash — the sport
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. tear — to rip

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