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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. chest — a box
  3. march — the month
  4. mug — a cup
  5. date — the fruit
  6. chest — of your body
  7. field — a subject
  8. suit — in cards
  9. field — farmland
  10. field — for sport
  11. content — the amount
  12. march — music
  13. snap — to click
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. chest — of your body
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. mug — to rob
  18. content — happy
  19. suit — to fit
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. suit — clothes
  22. march — the month
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. mug — a face

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