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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. court — of law
  3. spell — a short time
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bear — the animal
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. court — for sport
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. wake — a trail
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. pound — a weight
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. court — of a king
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. spell — letters
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. content — the amount
  24. spell — magic

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