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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 120 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 like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. drill — the tool
  3. mate — a partner
  4. mate — a friend
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. content — happy
  7. dip — to sink
  8. pound — a weight
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. drill — army training
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. bass — the fish
  14. bass — low music
  15. drill — a practice
  16. mate — to breed
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. content — the amount

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