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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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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. content — happy
  4. can — a tin
  5. pit — in a race
  6. race — humankind
  7. can — to be able to
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. content — the amount
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. race — a contest
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. season — of the year
  18. can — a tin
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. snap — to click
  21. race — the arms race
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. season — in sport
  24. pit — a hole

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