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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. chest — a box
  3. ball — a dance
  4. capital — money
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. last — final
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. ball — a great time
  12. content — happy
  13. capital — a city
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. content — the amount
  16. track — a path
  17. capital — a big letter
  18. track — a song
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — of your body
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. track — to keep track
  23. last — to go on
  24. fan — a supporter

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