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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. squash — to crush
  3. content — the amount
  4. content — happy
  5. saw — the tool
  6. swing — music
  7. saw — the tool
  8. squash — the sport
  9. wake — a trail
  10. chest — of your body
  11. rest — what's left
  12. file — a document
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. chest — of your body
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. file — a line of people
  18. swing — to play on
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. chest — a box
  21. rest — what's left
  22. file — a tool
  23. rest — a break
  24. swing — in golf

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