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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 120 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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. race — humankind
  4. content — the amount
  5. content — happy
  6. sharp — clever
  7. spring — the season
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. chip — for betting
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. band — a ring
  12. ball — a dance
  13. mark — a trace
  14. spring — of water
  15. mark — a grade
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. chip — to eat
  18. ball — a great time
  19. band — a music group
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. race — a contest
  23. race — the arms race
  24. sharp — exactly

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