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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: bear · kid · racket · tear · bound · patient · perch · hand

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. bound — certain
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. kid — child
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. bound — obliged
  9. bound — tied together
  10. tear — to rip
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. hand — in cards
  14. hand — help
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. bear — the animal
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. tear — from crying
  21. perch — the fish
  22. bear — the animal
  23. tear — from crying
  24. kid — to tease

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