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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. mug — a face
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. swing — music
  7. swing — in golf
  8. fall — to drop
  9. mug — a cup
  10. mug — to rob
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. stock — goods
  13. content — the amount
  14. bat — the animal
  15. march — music
  16. fall — the season
  17. march — the month
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. stock — shares
  20. fall — to drop
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. swing — to play on
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. march — the month

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