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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. content — happy
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. wax — for sculpting
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. wind — moving air
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. wax — to grow
  13. vault — a safe
  14. mate — a friend
  15. kid — to tease
  16. wind — moving air
  17. mate — to breed
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. mate — a partner
  20. content — the amount
  21. mark — a grade
  22. kid — child
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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