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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: tear · content · court · spring · chest · firm · bore · root

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  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. firm — decided
  2. content — the amount
  3. chest — of your body
  4. content — happy
  5. bore — to drill
  6. chest — a box
  7. court — of law
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. root — of a plant
  10. root — the cause
  11. tear — from crying
  12. spring — the season
  13. firm — a company
  14. root — of a word
  15. tear — to rip
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. chest — of your body
  18. spring — a coil
  19. court — of a king
  20. court — for sport
  21. bore — to tire
  22. spring — of water
  23. firm — steady
  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