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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. pound — a weight
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. content — the amount
  5. content — happy
  6. club — for golf
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. club — for dancing
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. kid — to tease
  16. bear — the animal
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. club — a group
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. vault — a safe
  21. bear — the animal
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. kid — child
  24. content — videos and posts

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