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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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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: suit · perch · hand · band · bear · tear · court · bulb

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. court — of a king
  3. band — a music group
  4. band — a ring
  5. suit — to fit
  6. bulb — for light
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. tear — to rip
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. suit — clothes
  11. bear — the animal
  12. court — for sport
  13. tear — from crying
  14. hand — in cards
  15. perch — the fish
  16. court — of law
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bear — the animal
  20. suit — in cards
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. hand — help

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