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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. mate — a partner
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. firm — steady
  6. court — for sport
  7. spell — magic
  8. dip — to sink
  9. cold — an illness
  10. court — of a king
  11. content — happy
  12. cold — not warm
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. firm — decided
  15. mate — to breed
  16. spell — a short time
  17. firm — a company
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. content — the amount
  20. spell — letters
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. mate — a friend
  24. dip — to dunk

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