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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. last — to go on
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. craft — boats
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. cell — a phone
  9. chip — for betting
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. last — final
  13. cell — in biology
  14. chip — to eat
  15. hand — help
  16. content — happy
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. hand — in cards
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. craft — a skill
  23. last — finally
  24. hand — part of the 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