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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 116 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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. drill — army training
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. content — happy
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — the tool
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. content — the amount
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. cap — a hat
  16. degree — an amount
  17. cap — of ice
  18. bulb — for light
  19. degree — from a university
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. ball — a great time
  22. degree — temperature
  23. ball — a dance
  24. cap — a lid

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