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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. spring — of water
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. current — electric
  9. content — happy
  10. ground — the earth
  11. snap — to click
  12. pound — a weight
  13. spring — the season
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. current — of water
  16. dip — to sink
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. current — happening now
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. ground — crushed
  21. ground — a position
  22. content — the amount
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. pound — for dogs

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