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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. content — the amount
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. pop — music
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. wake — a trail
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. rush — hurry
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. cell — a phone
  12. content — happy
  13. bore — to tire
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. pop — to visit
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. pop — soda
  19. bore — to drill
  20. pound — a weight
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — the tool
  23. cell — in biology
  24. pound — to hit hard

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