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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. mate — a friend
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. mate — a partner
  6. current — of water
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. current — electric
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. drill — the tool
  13. content — happy
  14. mate — to breed
  15. drill — army training
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. wake — a trail
  19. fine — all right
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. branch — a division
  22. drill — a practice
  23. fine — high quality
  24. current — happening now

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