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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: ball · bear · bat · bound · charge · court · straw · tear

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. bear — the animal
  3. bound — certain
  4. bound — tied together
  5. tear — from crying
  6. court — of a king
  7. charge — a price
  8. court — of law
  9. ball — a great time
  10. bound — obliged
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bat — the animal
  13. ball — a dance
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. tear — to rip
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. charge — electricity
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. charge — in control
  21. court — for sport
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. 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