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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. rule — a law
  4. pop — music
  5. band — a music group
  6. squash — the sport
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. chest — a box
  9. chest — of your body
  10. mate — a friend
  11. squash — to crush
  12. chest — of your body
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. content — happy
  15. band — a ring
  16. mate — a partner
  17. pop — soda
  18. rule — government
  19. content — the amount
  20. pop — to visit
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. mouse — the animal

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