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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. content — the amount
  3. content — happy
  4. foot — a measure
  5. deal — to handle
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. bear — the animal
  9. chest — of your body
  10. band — a music group
  11. rash — hasty
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. chest — of your body
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. bulb — for light
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. band — a ring
  20. chest — a box
  21. bulb — for light
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. rash — a series
  24. deal — a big deal

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