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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: bass · trunk · kid · content · rock · spell · pit · tear

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. tear — from crying
  3. bass — the fish
  4. tear — to rip
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. kid — child
  9. spell — magic
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. rock — music
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. pit — a hole
  15. spell — a short time
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bass — low music
  19. kid — to tease
  20. rock — a stone
  21. content — happy
  22. content — the amount
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. spell — letters

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