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

Word bank: tear · dip · content · patient · kid · pit

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. tear — to rip
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. content — happy
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. pit — in a race
  10. dip — to sink
  11. content — the amount
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. tear — from crying
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. pit — a hole
  16. tear — from crying
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. kid — to tease

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