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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: content · tear · wind · pit · squash · bark · jam · object

  1. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. object — to protest
  4. tear — to rip
  5. object — an aim
  6. bark — to shout
  7. pit — a hole
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. squash — the sport
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. content — the amount
  13. squash — to crush
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. pit — in a race
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. wind — moving air
  19. tear — from crying
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. content — happy
  22. wind — moving air
  23. jam — in traffic
  24. wind — to turn a key

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