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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. staff — employees
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. content — the amount
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. wax — to grow
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. row — a line
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. foot — a measure
  15. staff — employees
  16. row — to paddle
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. deal — to handle
  19. pitch — completely
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. staff — a stick

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