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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 120 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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. can — a tin
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. can — to be able to
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. tear — from crying
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. can — a tin
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. squash — to crush
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. content — the amount
  18. tear — to rip
  19. content — happy
  20. squash — the sport
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. tear — from crying
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. squash — the vegetable

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