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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. kid — child
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. net — in sport
  6. hand — help
  7. net — for catching
  8. content — the amount
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. mark — a trace
  11. bank — for money
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. hand — in cards
  15. net — after costs
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. bank — for money
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. kid — to tease
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. mark — a grade
  23. bank — of a river
  24. content — happy

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