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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. present — there
  3. court — of a king
  4. present — a gift
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. wind — moving air
  7. present — the time now
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. stock — shares
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. wind — moving air
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. track — a path
  15. stock — goods
  16. track — a song
  17. court — of law
  18. snap — to click
  19. bass — low music
  20. bass — the fish
  21. tear — to rip
  22. court — for sport
  23. tear — from crying
  24. track — to keep track

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