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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. deal — to handle
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. cold — an illness
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. root — of a plant
  11. land — ground
  12. content — the amount
  13. land — a country
  14. land — to come down
  15. ball — a great time
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. content — happy
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. root — the cause
  20. cold — not warm
  21. root — of a word
  22. tear — to rip
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. tear — from crying

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