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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. ball — a great time
  9. ball — a dance
  10. game — a match
  11. season — in sport
  12. branch — a division
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. content — happy
  19. content — the amount
  20. cell — a phone
  21. pound — a weight
  22. season — of the year
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. cell — in biology

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