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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. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. content — the amount
  8. deal — to handle
  9. rest — what's left
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. row — a line
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. row — to paddle
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. cell — in biology
  20. wake — a trail
  21. cell — a phone
  22. rest — what's left
  23. rest — a break
  24. plane — a tool

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