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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 124 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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. pit — a hole
  4. cap — a hat
  5. cap — of ice
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. hand — help
  9. content — happy
  10. hand — in cards
  11. bank — of a river
  12. bank — for money
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. bank — for money
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. pit — in a race
  18. cap — a lid
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bat — the animal

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