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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. content — happy
  3. deal — to handle
  4. sharp — clever
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. degree — temperature
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. content — the amount
  9. vault — a safe
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. degree — an amount
  15. scale — size or range
  16. degree — from a university
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. scale — in music
  24. pitcher — a jug

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