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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. last — final
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. last — finally
  5. content — the amount
  6. content — happy
  7. chest — of your body
  8. rest — what's left
  9. last — to go on
  10. rest — a break
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. pop — to visit
  13. rest — what's left
  14. pop — music
  15. chest — a box
  16. chest — of your body
  17. pop — soda
  18. calf — a young animal

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