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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. court — for sport
  3. rest — a break
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. court — of law
  6. content — the amount
  7. content — happy
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. rest — what's left
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. tear — from crying
  13. court — of a king
  14. tear — from crying
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. deal — to handle
  18. rest — what's left
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. tear — to rip
  21. bulb — for light
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. bulb — for light
  24. patient — a sick person

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