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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 120 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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. content — happy
  3. bound — obliged
  4. mark — a trace
  5. band — a ring
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. spell — letters
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. spell — a short time
  11. content — the amount
  12. mark — a grade
  13. vault — a safe
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. band — a music group
  18. mine — for digging
  19. bound — certain
  20. spell — magic
  21. lie — to recline
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. bound — tied together
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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