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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. press — to push
  3. mug — to rob
  4. content — the amount
  5. cell — in biology
  6. bear — the animal
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. bear — the animal
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. mug — a face
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. mug — a cup
  13. squash — the sport
  14. cell — a phone
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. press — newspapers
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. squash — to crush
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. press — a publisher
  22. date — the fruit
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. arm — a part of something

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