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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. spring — the season
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. bass — low music
  8. fork — in a road
  9. season — of the year
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rest — a break
  12. content — the amount
  13. season — in sport
  14. content — happy
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. bass — the fish
  18. bore — to tire
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. bore — to drill
  21. spring — of water
  22. bore — gave birth
  23. rest — what's left
  24. spring — a coil

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