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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. race — a contest
  3. season — of the year
  4. content — happy
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. net — after costs
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. net — in sport
  12. snap — to click
  13. race — humankind
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. content — the amount
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. kick — in football
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. race — the arms race
  24. net — for catching

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