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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 116 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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. row — to paddle
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. row — a line
  6. wind — moving air
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. object — an aim
  9. wind — moving air
  10. content — the amount
  11. ball — a dance
  12. march — the month
  13. ball — a great time
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. object — to protest
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. stand — to bear
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. march — music
  23. object — a thing
  24. march — the month

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