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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. kid — child
  8. ground — a position
  9. ball — a great time
  10. branch — a division
  11. ground — the earth
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. content — happy
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. ball — a dance
  18. lean — to bend
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. kid — to tease
  21. lean — thin
  22. ground — crushed
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. branch — of a bank

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