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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. club — for dancing
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. wake — a trail
  9. pit — in a race
  10. pit — a hole
  11. pop — soda
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. game — wild animals
  14. wound — an injury
  15. club — for golf
  16. pop — to visit
  17. content — the amount
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. wound — an injury
  20. game — a match
  21. content — happy
  22. club — a group
  23. pop — music
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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