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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. cap — of ice
  3. kid — child
  4. content — happy
  5. file — a document
  6. cap — a lid
  7. bound — certain
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. object — an aim
  10. object — a thing
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. object — to protest
  13. content — the amount
  14. bound — tied together
  15. mate — a partner
  16. file — a line of people
  17. mate — a friend
  18. cap — a hat
  19. mate — to breed
  20. kid — to tease
  21. bound — obliged
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. perch — the fish
  24. file — a tool

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