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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. content — the amount
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. content — happy
  5. fall — to drop
  6. can — a tin
  7. capital — a city
  8. fall — the season
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. mate — to breed
  12. tear — from crying
  13. mate — a partner
  14. fall — to drop
  15. tear — to rip
  16. can — to be able to
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. bat — the animal
  20. capital — money
  21. tear — from crying
  22. can — a tin
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. content — videos and posts

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