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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. snap — to click
  3. roll — a list
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. board — a committee
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. content — happy
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. content — the amount
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — an illness
  16. roll — a cake
  17. board — to get on
  18. season — of the year
  19. pop — to visit
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. pop — soda
  22. pop — music
  23. season — in sport
  24. temple — side of the head

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