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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. mate — to breed
  3. mate — a partner
  4. court — of law
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. court — of a king
  8. roll — a cake
  9. roll — a list
  10. mate — a friend
  11. rush — hurry
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. court — for sport
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. season — of the year
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. content — the amount
  24. season — in sport

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