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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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Word bank
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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. field — for sport
  3. content — happy
  4. fine — high quality
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. field — a subject
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. field — farmland
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. game — wild animals
  14. kid — to tease
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. dip — to sink
  17. game — a match
  18. wake — a trail
  19. content — the amount
  20. scale — size or range
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. scale — in music
  23. fine — all right
  24. kid — child

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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