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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 120 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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. race — the arms race
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. season — of the year
  5. pop — soda
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. pop — music
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — of your body
  10. race — a contest
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. chest — a box
  13. content — the amount
  14. race — humankind
  15. season — in sport
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. pop — to visit

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