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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 116 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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. content — happy
  4. net — for catching
  5. lean — thin
  6. content — the amount
  7. march — music
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. rash — hasty
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. net — in sport
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. march — the month
  14. game — wild animals
  15. root — the cause
  16. root — of a word
  17. root — of a plant
  18. march — the month
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. net — after costs
  21. game — a match
  22. rash — a series
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. lean — to bend

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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