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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  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. content — happy
  2. rest — what's left
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. lean — thin
  5. present — a gift
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. cap — of ice
  9. squash — the sport
  10. rest — a break
  11. rest — what's left
  12. present — the time now
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. content — the amount
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. lean — to bend
  20. squash — to crush
  21. sharp — clever
  22. present — there
  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