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

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. kid — to tease
  3. tear — from crying
  4. court — of a king
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. swing — to play on
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. snap — to click
  13. swing — in golf
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. court — for sport
  16. kid — child
  17. court — of law
  18. swing — music
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. deal — to handle
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. tear — to rip

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