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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. You can't go backstage without a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. hand — in cards
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. present — there
  8. chest — of your body
  9. present — a gift
  10. chest — a box
  11. band — a music group
  12. content — the amount
  13. content — happy
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. hand — help
  17. present — the time now
  18. deal — to handle
  19. pass — to spend time
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. band — a ring
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. pass — a permit

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