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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. mate — a friend
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. object — to protest
  5. cue — a signal
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. object — an aim
  8. content — happy
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. mate — a partner
  12. object — a thing
  13. cue — for pool
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. stock — goods
  16. cue — a hint
  17. mate — to breed
  18. content — the amount
  19. stock — shares
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. game — a match
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. game — wild animals
  24. calf — a young animal

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