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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  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. hand — help
  2. track — a song
  3. fall — to drop
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. track — to keep track
  6. kid — child
  7. track — a path
  8. content — happy
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. toast — bread
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. kid — to tease
  13. ball — a great time
  14. fall — the season
  15. drill — army training
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. hand — in cards
  18. drill — a practice
  19. fall — to drop
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. ball — a dance
  22. drill — the tool
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  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