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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. bulb — for light
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. content — happy
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. rash — a series
  8. kid — to tease
  9. mate — to breed
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. mate — a partner
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. shower — to wash
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. rash — hasty
  18. content — the amount
  19. kid — child
  20. mate — a friend
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. shower — rain
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. rash — on the skin

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