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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. object — to protest
  3. band — a music group
  4. rest — what's left
  5. net — in sport
  6. can — a tin
  7. spring — of water
  8. can — to be able to
  9. can — a tin
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. object — a thing
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. spring — a coil
  15. rest — a break
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. net — after costs
  18. band — a ring
  19. rest — what's left
  20. net — for catching
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. content — the amount
  23. object — an aim
  24. spring — the season

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