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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 116 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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. ground — a position
  5. ground — crushed
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. march — the month
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. ground — the earth
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. face — part of the head
  14. face — to point toward
  15. face — to confront
  16. vault — a safe
  17. hand — help
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. content — the amount
  21. hand — in cards
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. march — music
  24. march — the month

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