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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. scale — size or range
  3. bear — the animal
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. pop — music
  6. pop — to visit
  7. rest — a break
  8. rest — what's left
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. bear — the animal
  11. scale — in music
  12. bank — for money
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. content — the amount
  16. rest — what's left
  17. pop — soda
  18. bank — of a river
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cell — a phone
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. bank — for money

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