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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 120 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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. saw — the tool
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. pop — music
  5. last — final
  6. last — finally
  7. content — the amount
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. content — happy
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. pitch — completely
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. bound — tied together
  16. pop — soda
  17. bat — the animal
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. bound — certain
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. last — to go on
  23. bound — obliged
  24. saw — the tool

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