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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: court · object · file · plane · pound · tear

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. object — an aim
  3. file — a line of people
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. court — of a king
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. file — a document
  9. pound — a weight
  10. tear — from crying
  11. file — a tool
  12. object — to protest
  13. tear — to rip
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. object — a thing
  16. court — for sport
  17. court — of law
  18. plane — a tool

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