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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. present — the time now
  3. content — the amount
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. spell — a short time
  9. toast — bread
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. mine — for digging
  12. date — the fruit
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. present — a gift
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. spell — magic
  22. spell — letters
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. present — there

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