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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. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. last — finally
  7. root — of a word
  8. kid — child
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — the tool
  12. last — to go on
  13. drill — army training
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. kid — to tease
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. content — the amount
  18. root — the cause
  19. vault — a safe
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. last — final
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. root — of a plant
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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