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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 116 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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. press — newspapers
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. rule — government
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. sharp — clever
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. wax — to grow
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. content — the amount
  15. press — to push
  16. press — a publisher
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bat — the animal
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. rule — a law
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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