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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. shower — to wash
  3. content — the amount
  4. land — to come down
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. season — of the year
  7. shower — rain
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. content — happy
  10. wax — to grow
  11. land — a country
  12. season — in sport
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. land — ground
  18. wax — in the ear

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