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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. bound — obliged
  4. hand — in cards
  5. game — wild animals
  6. content — the amount
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. bound — certain
  10. stock — shares
  11. content — happy
  12. scale — in music
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. stock — goods
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. wound — an injury
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. wound — an injury
  22. bound — tied together
  23. game — a match
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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