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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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. hand — in cards
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. object — an aim
  5. object — to protest
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. object — a thing
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. squash — the sport
  10. content — the amount
  11. march — the month
  12. bear — the animal
  13. wax — to grow
  14. hand — help
  15. bound — obliged
  16. march — the month
  17. content — happy
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. bear — the animal
  20. march — music
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. squash — to crush
  23. bound — certain
  24. wax — in the ear

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