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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. ball — a great time
  3. perch — the fish
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — of your body
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. content — the amount
  9. firm — decided
  10. ball — a dance
  11. firm — a company
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. content — happy
  14. last — to go on
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. cap — of ice
  17. chest — a box
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. firm — steady
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. last — final
  22. last — finally
  23. cap — a lid
  24. cap — a hat

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