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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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468
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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. race — humankind
  6. rest — what's left
  7. rest — a break
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. bass — the fish
  10. race — a contest
  11. land — ground
  12. land — a country
  13. bass — low music
  14. bound — certain
  15. content — the amount
  16. bore — to tire
  17. bound — tied together
  18. bound — obliged
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. land — to come down
  21. rest — what's left
  22. bore — to drill
  23. race — the arms race
  24. content — videos and posts

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