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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. tube — the underground
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. court — of a king
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. stock — goods
  9. bore — to drill
  10. tear — to rip
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. tear — from crying
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. bass — low music
  16. bass — the fish
  17. court — for sport
  18. pound — a weight
  19. court — of law
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. stock — shares
  22. tear — from crying
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. tube — a container

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