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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. swing — to play on
  4. content — happy
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. land — a country
  7. swing — music
  8. root — of a plant
  9. content — the amount
  10. chest — a box
  11. chest — of your body
  12. root — the cause
  13. stock — goods
  14. lean — to bend
  15. chest — of your body
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. swing — in golf
  18. scale — in music
  19. land — to come down
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. root — of a word
  22. stock — shares
  23. scale — size or range
  24. land — ground

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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