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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. last — to go on
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. rash — hasty
  6. wind — moving air
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. last — final
  9. bulb — for light
  10. track — a path
  11. rash — a series
  12. track — to keep track
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. ball — a great time
  18. wind — moving air
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. last — finally
  21. bulb — for light
  22. content — the amount
  23. track — a song
  24. content — happy

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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