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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 116 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: rash · hand · tear · net · spring · bore · key · content

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. key — for a lock
  3. tear — to rip
  4. tear — from crying
  5. hand — help
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. content — the amount
  8. bore — to drill
  9. rash — a series
  10. spring — a coil
  11. content — happy
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. key — the most important part
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. spring — the season
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. rash — hasty
  18. spring — of water
  19. net — after costs
  20. hand — in cards
  21. net — for catching
  22. bore — to tire
  23. net — in sport
  24. key — in music

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