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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 116 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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. swing — music
  4. swing — in golf
  5. snap — to click
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. rest — what's left
  8. rest — what's left
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. rest — a break
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. swing — to play on
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. cap — a lid
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. cap — a hat
  18. cap — of ice
  19. content — the amount
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. dip — to sink
  22. pound — a weight
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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