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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 116 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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. track — a song
  4. content — happy
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. present — the time now
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. mug — a face
  10. cold — an illness
  11. wound — an injury
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. cold — not warm
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. track — to keep track
  16. present — a gift
  17. wound — an injury
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. content — the amount
  20. season — of the year
  21. track — a path
  22. mug — to rob
  23. season — in sport
  24. mug — a cup

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