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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. pit — a hole
  3. row — to paddle
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. spell — magic
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. row — a line
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. spell — a short time
  11. race — a contest
  12. pit — in a race
  13. race — the arms race
  14. content — the amount
  15. race — humankind
  16. cue — a hint
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. spell — letters
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. kick — in football
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. cue — for pool
  24. cue — a signal

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