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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  24. Have you settled on a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. content — the amount
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. ball — a great time
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bass — the fish
  8. wake — a trail
  9. mate — to breed
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. content — happy
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. capital — money
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. date — the fruit
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. bass — low music
  19. saw — the tool
  20. mate — a partner
  21. saw — the tool
  22. ball — a dance
  23. capital — a city
  24. date — on the calendar

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