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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: swing · pop · bank · pitcher · tear · court · object · cell

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bank — for money
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. swing — in golf
  6. cell — a phone
  7. object — an aim
  8. pop — soda
  9. tear — from crying
  10. pop — music
  11. court — of law
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. bank — of a river
  14. object — a thing
  15. court — of a king
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. pop — to visit
  18. cell — in biology
  19. object — to protest
  20. bank — for money
  21. swing — music
  22. swing — to play on
  23. tear — to rip
  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