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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. press — to push
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. content — happy
  5. press — a publisher
  6. row — a line
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. perch — the fish
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. bound — certain
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. press — newspapers
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. date — the fruit
  19. bound — tied together
  20. row — to paddle
  21. bound — obliged
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. jam — in traffic

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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