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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. content — happy
  3. mate — to breed
  4. cell — a phone
  5. shower — rain
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. cell — in biology
  8. shower — to wash
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. mate — a partner
  11. bound — obliged
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. content — the amount
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. bound — certain
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. bound — tied together
  23. mate — a friend
  24. wake — a trail

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