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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. vault — a safe
  3. file — a document
  4. club — for dancing
  5. tear — to rip
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. file — a line of people
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. file — a tool
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. foot — a measure
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. tear — from crying
  17. content — happy
  18. club — for golf
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. tear — from crying
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. dip — to sink
  24. club — a group

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