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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. squash — to crush
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cold — an illness
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. content — happy
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. bore — to drill
  12. mark — a trace
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. squash — the sport
  18. content — the amount
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. mark — a grade
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bore — to tire
  24. kick — in football

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