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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. mate — to breed
  4. squash — to crush
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. chest — a box
  7. ball — a great time
  8. mark — a trace
  9. content — the amount
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. mate — a friend
  12. squash — the sport
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. ball — a dance
  15. capital — a city
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. content — happy
  18. chest — of your body
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. capital — money
  21. mate — a partner
  22. mark — a grade
  23. snap — to click
  24. chest — of your body

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