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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. last — final
  3. rash — a series
  4. rash — hasty
  5. rest — what's left
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. net — in sport
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. net — for catching
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. land — to come down
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. rest — what's left
  15. last — finally
  16. capital — money
  17. last — to go on
  18. net — after costs
  19. land — ground
  20. land — a country
  21. content — happy
  22. rest — a break
  23. capital — a city
  24. capital — a big letter

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