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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. spell — letters
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. content — happy
  8. pop — to visit
  9. fine — high quality
  10. stock — shares
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. stock — goods
  14. game — wild animals
  15. spell — a short time
  16. hand — in cards
  17. game — a match
  18. hand — help
  19. pop — soda
  20. fine — all right
  21. pop — music
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. spell — magic
  24. leaves — lets stay

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