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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. degree — from a university
  4. charge — in control
  5. kid — to tease
  6. content — happy
  7. ball — a great time
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. charge — a price
  12. degree — temperature
  13. charge — electricity
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. last — to go on
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. ball — a dance
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. last — final
  20. degree — an amount
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. content — the amount
  24. last — finally

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