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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. pit — in a race
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. lean — to bend
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. content — happy
  7. lean — thin
  8. pop — to visit
  9. row — a line
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. lie — to recline
  12. pit — a hole
  13. pop — soda
  14. capital — a city
  15. sharp — clever
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. content — the amount
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. capital — money
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. row — to paddle

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