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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. spring — the season
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. content — happy
  6. band — a ring
  7. squash — the sport
  8. scale — size or range
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. rock — music
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. squash — to crush
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. scale — in music
  20. spring — of water
  21. rock — a stone
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. band — a music group
  24. content — the amount

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