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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 116 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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. bat — the animal
  3. mug — a cup
  4. last — finally
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. court — for sport
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. chip — to eat
  9. mug — a face
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. rock — a stone
  12. mug — to rob
  13. last — final
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. mine — for digging
  16. content — the amount
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. court — of a king
  19. last — to go on
  20. court — of law
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. content — happy
  23. chip — for betting
  24. mine — an explosive

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