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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. ball — a great time
  3. craft — boats
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. tear — from crying
  6. present — there
  7. track — a song
  8. craft — a skill
  9. track — to keep track
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. present — the time now
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — the animal
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. tear — from crying
  16. row — a line
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. present — a gift
  19. track — a path
  20. row — to paddle
  21. court — for sport
  22. court — of a king
  23. ball — a dance
  24. court — of law

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