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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. content — the amount
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. toast — bread
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. spring — of water
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. squash — the sport
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. spring — a coil
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. hand — help
  15. dip — to sink
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. spring — the season
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. squash — to crush
  21. content — happy
  22. hand — in cards
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. nail — on a finger

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