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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. pitch — completely
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. bark — to shout
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. mark — a trace
  11. vault — a safe
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. mark — a grade
  16. wound — an injury
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. content — the amount
  24. mark — to pay attention

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