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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: bowl · bat · tear · march · chip · content · bear · fork

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. tear — to rip
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. content — happy
  9. march — the month
  10. fork — in a road
  11. chip — for betting
  12. march — music
  13. bear — the animal
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. tear — from crying
  18. content — the amount
  19. bat — the animal
  20. tear — from crying
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. chip — to eat
  23. march — the month
  24. bear — to put up with

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