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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. wind — moving air
  4. sharp — clever
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. board — to get on
  7. wind — moving air
  8. snap — to click
  9. board — a committee
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. cap — of ice
  12. cap — a lid
  13. bear — the animal
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. content — the amount
  16. bear — the animal
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. cap — a hat
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. leaves — to go away

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