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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 116 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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. fine — high quality
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. shower — to wash
  6. row — to paddle
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. row — a line
  9. game — a match
  10. mark — a grade
  11. mark — a trace
  12. shower — rain
  13. kid — child
  14. snap — to click
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. content — the amount
  17. game — wild animals
  18. kid — to tease
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. fine — all right
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. content — happy
  24. mark — to pay attention

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