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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 120 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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. mate — a partner
  4. wake — a trail
  5. march — the month
  6. cold — an illness
  7. march — the month
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. content — the amount
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. pop — music
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. bulb — for light
  17. content — happy
  18. mate — a friend
  19. pop — to visit
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. march — music
  22. mate — to breed
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. pop — soda

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