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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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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 · pitcher · tear · trunk · snap · race · stand · date

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. tear — from crying
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. bear — the animal
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. tear — from crying
  10. bear — the animal
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. tear — to rip
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. stand — to bear
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. race — a contest
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. race — the arms race
  22. date — the fruit
  23. snap — to click
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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