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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. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — a drink to someone
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. rush — hurry
  7. toast — bread
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. bore — to drill
  10. content — happy
  11. wound — an injury
  12. lie — to recline
  13. content — the amount
  14. row — to paddle
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. snap — to click
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bore — to tire
  21. row — a line
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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