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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. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. stock — shares
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. bore — to tire
  6. bore — to drill
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. key — the most important part
  11. key — in music
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. rock — music
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. key — for a lock
  20. content — the amount
  21. rock — a stone
  22. stock — goods
  23. mine — for digging
  24. stock — a soup base

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