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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bank — of a river
  4. spring — a coil
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. spring — the season
  7. bank — for money
  8. content — the amount
  9. vault — a safe
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. bank — for money
  17. spring — of water
  18. bowl — to roll

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