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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  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. court — of law
  2. tear — from crying
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. tube — a container
  7. court — for sport
  8. can — to be able to
  9. kid — child
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. tear — from crying
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. court — of a king
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. dip — to sink
  19. can — a tin
  20. kid — to tease
  21. tube — the underground
  22. pound — a weight
  23. can — a tin
  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