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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. rush — hurry
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. squash — the sport
  5. mate — a friend
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. content — the amount
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. mate — to breed
  11. kick — in football
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. content — happy
  17. rash — a series
  18. squash — to crush
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. rash — hasty
  21. can — a tin
  22. mate — a partner
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — to be able to

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