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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. content — happy
  4. snap — to click
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — an injury
  7. tube — a container
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. degree — an amount
  11. content — the amount
  12. degree — temperature
  13. toast — bread
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. face — to point toward
  17. tube — the underground
  18. face — to confront
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. face — part of the head
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. degree — from a university
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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