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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. wake — a trail
  3. firm — steady
  4. cold — an illness
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. mug — a face
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. club — for dancing
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. toast — bread
  11. firm — a company
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. mug — to rob
  14. firm — decided
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. content — happy
  17. content — the amount
  18. club — for golf
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — an injury
  21. cold — not warm
  22. club — a group
  23. mug — a cup
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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