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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 120 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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. wind — moving air
  5. content — happy
  6. fall — to drop
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. fall — the season
  9. season — of the year
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. wind — moving air
  13. season — in sport
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. fall — to drop
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. prune — to trim
  21. deal — to handle
  22. prune — to trim
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. arm — a part of something

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