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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. charge — in control
  5. track — a song
  6. band — a ring
  7. track — a path
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. bear — the animal
  10. bear — the animal
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. ball — a dance
  13. ball — a great time
  14. track — to keep track
  15. pit — a hole
  16. pit — in a race
  17. charge — electricity
  18. content — happy
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. charge — a price
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. mine — for digging
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. band — a music group

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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