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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. tear — from crying
  4. club — for golf
  5. tear — from crying
  6. content — happy
  7. tear — to rip
  8. cold — not warm
  9. content — the amount
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. court — of law
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. ball — a dance
  15. club — for dancing
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. club — a group
  20. cold — an illness
  21. court — for sport
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. court — of a king

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