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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. march — the month
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. game — wild animals
  7. pop — soda
  8. chest — of your body
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. pop — music
  11. chest — a box
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. content — happy
  15. pop — to visit
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. content — the amount
  18. march — the month
  19. game — a match
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. march — music
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. mark — a grade
  24. chest — of your body

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