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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. content — the amount
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. march — the month
  7. content — happy
  8. can — a tin
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. march — music
  12. hand — in cards
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. hand — help
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. can — a tin
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. shower — rain
  20. shower — to wash
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. mine — for digging
  24. march — the month

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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