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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. present — a gift
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. present — there
  8. rest — a break
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. club — a group
  12. club — for dancing
  13. shower — to wash
  14. content — the amount
  15. swing — to play on
  16. swing — in golf
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. present — the time now
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — what's left
  22. shower — rain
  23. club — for golf
  24. swing — music

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