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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. cap — of ice
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. game — wild animals
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. net — for catching
  9. content — happy
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. content — the amount
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. row — to paddle
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. cap — a lid
  18. cap — a hat
  19. row — a line
  20. net — in sport
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. net — after costs

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