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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. perch — the fish
  4. pop — soda
  5. bore — to drill
  6. band — a ring
  7. mug — a face
  8. pop — music
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. ball — a great time
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. mug — a cup
  15. pop — to visit
  16. content — happy
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. ball — a dance
  21. content — the amount
  22. bore — to tire
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. band — a music group

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