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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. lean — thin
  3. content — the amount
  4. pop — soda
  5. tube — a container
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. court — for sport
  8. lean — to bend
  9. track — a song
  10. ball — a great time
  11. perch — the fish
  12. track — a path
  13. ball — a dance
  14. pop — music
  15. content — happy
  16. court — of law
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. court — of a king
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. track — to keep track
  22. tube — the underground
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. content — videos and posts

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