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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. row — to paddle
  3. tear — from crying
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. bat — the animal
  8. court — of law
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. tear — to rip
  11. date — the fruit
  12. court — of a king
  13. rest — a break
  14. rest — what's left
  15. court — for sport
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. root — the cause
  19. game — a match
  20. game — wild animals
  21. root — of a plant
  22. row — a line
  23. root — of a word
  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