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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: hand · content · key · land · present · tear · roll · bear

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. bear — the animal
  4. tear — from crying
  5. land — to come down
  6. tear — to rip
  7. present — the time now
  8. roll — a list
  9. land — ground
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. key — for a lock
  12. content — happy
  13. key — in music
  14. key — the most important part
  15. hand — in cards
  16. roll — a cake
  17. present — a gift
  18. land — a country
  19. content — the amount
  20. hand — help
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. bear — the animal
  23. present — there
  24. hand — part of the body

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