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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: kid · stock · bank · court · bass · bear · straw · tear

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. court — of law
  4. bank — for money
  5. tear — to rip
  6. kid — to tease
  7. bass — the fish
  8. stock — a soup base
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bass — low music
  12. bank — for money
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. bank — of a river
  15. tear — from crying
  16. stock — shares
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bear — the animal
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. stock — goods
  22. court — of a king
  23. kid — child
  24. court — for sport

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