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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. scale — in music
  3. race — the arms race
  4. swing — music
  5. content — happy
  6. kid — child
  7. race — a contest
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. swing — in golf
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. scale — size or range
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. mine — for digging
  17. kid — to tease
  18. content — the amount
  19. race — humankind
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. swing — to play on

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