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

Word bank: fall · mate · content · row · club · tear

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. tear — from crying
  3. club — for golf
  4. club — for dancing
  5. club — a group
  6. mate — a friend
  7. tear — to rip
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. row — a line
  11. fall — the season
  12. content — happy
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — to drop
  15. mate — a partner
  16. content — the amount
  17. mate — to breed
  18. tear — from crying

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