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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. hand — help
  3. hand — in cards
  4. can — a tin
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. track — a path
  7. kid — child
  8. can — to be able to
  9. net — in sport
  10. content — happy
  11. stand — to bear
  12. key — the most important part
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. key — in music
  17. net — for catching
  18. track — to keep track
  19. kid — to tease
  20. can — a tin
  21. key — for a lock
  22. net — after costs
  23. track — a song
  24. stand — on your feet

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