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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 little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. season — of the year
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. tear — from crying
  5. kid — to tease
  6. bear — the animal
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. band — a music group
  10. tear — from crying
  11. content — the amount
  12. content — happy
  13. tear — to rip
  14. band — a ring
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. rock — a stone
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. rock — music
  20. season — in sport
  21. kid — child
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. mouse — the animal

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