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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. content — the amount
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. bank — of a river
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. wake — a trail
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. field — a subject
  12. firm — steady
  13. craft — a skill
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. firm — a company
  16. bank — for money
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. field — farmland
  19. cold — not warm
  20. firm — decided
  21. cold — an illness
  22. craft — boats
  23. bank — for money
  24. field — for sport

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