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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. cold — not warm
  3. rest — what's left
  4. club — for dancing
  5. court — for sport
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. court — of a king
  8. tear — to rip
  9. rest — what's left
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. content — the amount
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — from crying
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. club — a group
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. rest — a break
  22. cold — an illness
  23. content — happy
  24. club — for golf

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