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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. When will it ________________ you to start?
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. track — a path
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. suit — clothes
  7. mine — for digging
  8. content — happy
  9. track — a song
  10. suit — to fit
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. cap — a hat
  14. bat — the animal
  15. net — after costs
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. squash — to crush
  18. net — in sport
  19. content — the amount
  20. squash — the sport
  21. cap — a lid
  22. cap — of ice
  23. track — to keep track
  24. net — for catching

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