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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. bound — obliged
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. cap — a lid
  8. rash — hasty
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. cap — of ice
  13. cap — a hat
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. squash — to crush
  16. rash — a series
  17. squash — the sport
  18. content — happy
  19. wax — to grow
  20. date — the fruit
  21. bound — certain
  22. bound — tied together
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. date — on the calendar

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