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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 · tube · court · current · spring · game · deal · straw

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. game — a match
  3. tube — a container
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. deal — to handle
  7. court — of a king
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. tube — the underground
  10. court — for sport
  11. current — happening now
  12. court — of law
  13. spring — a coil
  14. current — of water
  15. spring — the season
  16. game — wild animals
  17. current — electric
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — from crying
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. spring — of water

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