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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. content — happy
  3. march — the month
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. cue — a hint
  6. march — music
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. content — the amount
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. march — the month
  11. row — to paddle
  12. rest — a break
  13. deal — to handle
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. cue — for pool
  17. cue — a signal
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. rest — what's left
  21. shower — to wash
  22. shower — rain
  23. rest — what's left
  24. row — a line

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