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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · drill · game · bass · pit · content · wound · scale

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. bass — the fish
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. scale — in music
  5. drill — the tool
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. game — wild animals
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. scale — size or range
  10. bass — low music
  11. drill — a practice
  12. tear — to rip
  13. tear — from crying
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. wound — an injury
  17. content — happy
  18. game — a match
  19. content — the amount
  20. drill — army training
  21. wound — an injury
  22. pit — a hole
  23. pit — in a race
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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