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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. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. board — to get on
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. content — the amount
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. board — a committee
  10. cold — an illness
  11. band — a music group
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. craft — boats
  16. cold — not warm
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. band — a ring
  20. wake — a trail
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. craft — a skill
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. arm — a part of something

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