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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 120 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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. sharp — clever
  3. cell — in biology
  4. content — the amount
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. fine — all right
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. wind — moving air
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. pit — in a race
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. wind — moving air
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. fine — high quality
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. pit — a hole
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. cell — a phone
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. vault — a safe
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. wind — to turn a key

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