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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. fork — in a road
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. mug — a face
  10. field — a subject
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. content — the amount
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. bat — the animal
  15. chip — for betting
  16. pound — a weight
  17. mug — to rob
  18. content — happy
  19. field — farmland
  20. pound — to hit hard
  21. mug — a cup
  22. chip — to eat
  23. field — for sport
  24. chip — in a computer

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