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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. rush — hurry
  5. last — final
  6. pop — to visit
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. content — the amount
  12. pop — music
  13. rule — government
  14. squash — the sport
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. pop — soda
  17. squash — to crush
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. rule — a law
  21. content — happy
  22. last — finally
  23. last — to go on
  24. content — videos and posts

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