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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. content — happy
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. bat — the animal
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. cap — a lid
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. sharp — clever
  11. march — the month
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. march — music
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. march — the month
  17. cap — a hat
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. cap — of ice
  21. content — the amount
  22. pass — a permit
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. hide — animal skin

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