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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. content — happy
  3. swing — in golf
  4. band — a ring
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. season — of the year
  8. snap — to click
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. can — a tin
  11. can — to be able to
  12. can — a tin
  13. season — in sport
  14. content — the amount
  15. band — a music group
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. swing — to play on
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. swing — music
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. shower — rain
  23. shower — to wash
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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