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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. bear — the animal
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. root — the cause
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. swing — music
  7. swing — to play on
  8. bear — the animal
  9. capital — a city
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. sharp — clever
  12. capital — money
  13. tube — the underground
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. root — of a word
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. content — happy
  19. tube — a container
  20. swing — in golf
  21. content — the amount
  22. fork — in a road
  23. root — of a plant
  24. fork — to eat with

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