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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: scale · lean · pop · dip · tear · wake · trunk · bear

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. tear — from crying
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. lean — thin
  6. tear — from crying
  7. lean — to bend
  8. bear — the animal
  9. tear — to rip
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. dip — to sink
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. scale — size or range
  17. bear — the animal
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. pop — music
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. pop — to visit
  22. wake — a trail
  23. scale — in music
  24. pop — soda

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