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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — a short time
  4. pop — soda
  5. pop — to visit
  6. fall — to drop
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. spell — magic
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. root — of a word
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. land — a country
  13. root — the cause
  14. pop — music
  15. fall — the season
  16. fall — to drop
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. content — happy
  19. land — ground
  20. foot — a measure
  21. land — to come down
  22. root — of a plant
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. lash — an eyelash

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