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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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. game — wild animals
  8. sharp — clever
  9. content — the amount
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. game — a match
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. fork — in a road
  15. cap — a lid
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. cap — a hat
  20. row — a line
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. row — to paddle
  23. content — happy
  24. fork — to eat with

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