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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. tear — to rip
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. march — music
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. tear — from crying
  7. tube — the underground
  8. court — for sport
  9. content — the amount
  10. kick — in football
  11. bat — the animal
  12. plane — a tool
  13. march — the month
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. tube — a container
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. court — of a king
  20. march — the month
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. content — happy
  23. court — of law
  24. kick — a thrill

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