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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. degree — from a university
  6. content — happy
  7. present — there
  8. wind — moving air
  9. dip — to sink
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. degree — an amount
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. degree — temperature
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. bat — the animal
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. content — the amount
  23. present — the time now
  24. present — a gift

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