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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. content — the amount
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. march — the month
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. saw — the tool
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. march — the month
  9. ground — the earth
  10. club — for dancing
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. capital — a city
  13. club — a group
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. capital — money
  16. content — happy
  17. pop — to visit
  18. club — for golf
  19. saw — the tool
  20. ground — a position
  21. ground — crushed
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. pop — music
  24. march — music

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