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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. squash — the sport
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. content — happy
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. saw — the tool
  8. pit — a hole
  9. pit — in a race
  10. mine — for digging
  11. bulb — for light
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. squash — to crush
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. saw — the tool
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. lean — thin
  24. lean — to bend

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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