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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. fine — all right
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. degree — from a university
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. content — happy
  9. chest — a box
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. degree — temperature
  14. degree — an amount
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. snap — to click
  17. chest — of your body
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. content — the amount
  22. chest — of your body
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. fine — high quality

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