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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: wind · chair · ruler · fine · shower · band · rush · tear

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. tear — from crying
  7. fine — all right
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. rush — hurry
  10. tear — to rip
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. band — a ring
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. shower — to wash
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. wind — moving air
  17. band — a music group
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. shower — rain
  21. fine — high quality
  22. wind — moving air
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. chair — a leader

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