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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. cell — in biology
  3. land — to come down
  4. current — of water
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. current — electric
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. content — happy
  9. ball — a great time
  10. spring — the season
  11. content — the amount
  12. spring — of water
  13. tube — the underground
  14. tube — a container
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. land — a country
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. current — happening now
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. land — ground
  22. ball — a dance
  23. spring — a coil
  24. cell — a phone

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