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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. swing — to play on
  3. cap — a hat
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. march — music
  8. swing — in golf
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — rain
  12. cap — of ice
  13. sharp — clever
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. cap — a lid
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. march — the month
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. swing — music
  23. march — the month
  24. content — happy

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