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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. mate — to breed
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. ball — a dance
  6. mate — a partner
  7. stock — shares
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. season — in sport
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. content — the amount
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. stock — goods
  15. season — of the year
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. mate — a friend
  18. ball — a great time

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