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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. mine — for digging
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. land — a country
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. content — happy
  8. drill — army training
  9. rush — hurry
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. drill — a practice
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. pass — a permit
  15. land — ground
  16. pound — a weight
  17. lie — to recline
  18. land — to come down
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. drill — the tool
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. pound — to hit hard

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