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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. club — for golf
  3. club — for dancing
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. content — happy
  8. drill — a practice
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. club — a group
  12. drill — the tool
  13. perch — the fish
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. pop — to visit
  16. snap — to click
  17. season — of the year
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. season — in sport
  22. content — the amount
  23. pop — music
  24. drill — army training

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