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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. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. content — happy
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. lean — to bend
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. content — the amount
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. band — a ring
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. wake — a trail
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. row — to paddle
  21. chip — to eat
  22. row — a line
  23. chip — for betting
  24. lean — thin

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