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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. spell — a short time
  5. spell — magic
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — of water
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. foot — a measure
  10. rest — a break
  11. mine — for digging
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — what's left
  15. drill — the tool
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. spell — letters
  19. content — the amount
  20. spring — a coil
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. drill — army training
  24. drill — a practice

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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