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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. fall — the season
  3. swing — in golf
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. fall — to drop
  9. capital — money
  10. cell — in biology
  11. snap — to click
  12. swing — music
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. content — happy
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. swing — to play on
  18. capital — a city
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. fall — to drop
  22. cell — a phone
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. patient — a sick person

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