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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. content — happy
  3. race — a contest
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. squash — the sport
  6. race — humankind
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. track — to keep track
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. bat — the animal
  12. track — a song
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. pop — music
  15. pop — soda
  16. content — the amount
  17. pop — to visit
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. race — the arms race
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. track — a path
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. squash — to crush

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