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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 120 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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. pop — to visit
  3. file — a line of people
  4. foot — a measure
  5. shower — rain
  6. shower — to wash
  7. file — a tool
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. content — the amount
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. file — a document
  13. fine — all right
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. deal — to handle
  16. pop — music
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. fine — high quality
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. pop — soda
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. content — videos and posts

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