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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. chest — of your body
  3. content — happy
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. cue — a hint
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. hand — in cards
  8. net — in sport
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. net — after costs
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. kid — to tease
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. chest — a box
  15. chest — of your body
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. cue — for pool
  19. toast — bread
  20. net — for catching
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. cue — a signal
  23. kid — child
  24. hand — help

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