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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. scale — in music
  3. fall — the season
  4. foot — a measure
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. tear — to rip
  7. content — happy
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. stock — goods
  11. fall — to drop
  12. cue — a signal
  13. content — the amount
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. cue — for pool
  16. tear — from crying
  17. scale — size or range
  18. fall — to drop
  19. band — a music group
  20. cue — a hint
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. stock — shares
  23. tear — from crying
  24. content — videos and posts

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