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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 120 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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. hand — help
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. court — for sport
  6. chair — a leader
  7. tear — from crying
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. court — of a king
  10. mine — for digging
  11. ball — a dance
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. ball — a great time
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. tear — to rip
  23. court — of law
  24. hand — in cards

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