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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. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. content — the amount
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tube — the underground
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. net — in sport
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. foot — a measure
  10. net — for catching
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. content — happy
  14. net — after costs
  15. bat — the animal
  16. row — to paddle
  17. tear — to rip
  18. row — a line
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. tube — a container
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. rule — a law
  24. rule — government

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