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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. cue — for pool
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. rash — hasty
  5. pop — music
  6. pop — soda
  7. rash — a series
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. cue — a signal
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spring — of water
  12. spring — the season
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. cue — a hint
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. content — happy
  19. rush — hurry
  20. bat — the animal
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. pop — to visit
  24. straw — a straw man

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