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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. squash — the sport
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. content — the amount
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. snap — to click
  8. object — to protest
  9. object — a thing
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. content — happy
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. wake — a trail
  15. degree — temperature
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. degree — an amount
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. bear — the animal
  20. degree — from a university
  21. object — an aim
  22. squash — to crush
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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