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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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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: stand · court · content · present · rock · racket · tear · mate

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. rock — music
  3. content — the amount
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. content — happy
  7. court — for sport
  8. rock — a stone
  9. present — there
  10. mate — a partner
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. tear — from crying
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. mate — a friend
  15. tear — from crying
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. stand — to bear
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. court — of law
  20. court — of a king
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. present — a gift
  23. present — the time now
  24. mate — to breed

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