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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. pop — music
  4. tube — a container
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. content — happy
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. tube — the underground
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. content — the amount
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. cold — not warm
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. craft — a skill
  16. pop — to visit
  17. kick — in football
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. foot — a measure
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. craft — boats
  22. pop — soda
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. perch — the fish

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