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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. content — happy
  3. bark — to shout
  4. foot — a measure
  5. squash — the sport
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. squash — to crush
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. content — the amount
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. fine — high quality
  23. perch — the fish
  24. fine — all right

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