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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 124 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: tear · plane · season · racket · row · spell · mouse · chest

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. tear — to rip
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. spell — a short time
  5. season — of the year
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. chest — of your body
  10. tear — from crying
  11. plane — a tool
  12. row — a line
  13. spell — letters
  14. tear — from crying
  15. spell — magic
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. chest — a box
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. chest — of your body
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. row — to paddle

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