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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. march — the month
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. march — music
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. march — the month
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. chest — a box
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. content — the amount
  11. lie — to recline
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. rash — a series
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. chest — of your body
  19. chest — of your body
  20. rash — hasty
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. pound — a weight
  24. pitcher — a jug

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