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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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. kick — in football
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. ball — a great time
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. mug — to rob
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. mug — a cup
  9. content — happy
  10. content — the amount
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. wake — a trail
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. cold — not warm
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. mug — a face
  21. toast — bread
  22. cold — an illness
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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