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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. dip — a sauce
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tear — to rip
  6. mark — a trace
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. content — happy
  9. squash — to crush
  10. tear — from crying
  11. row — a line
  12. mark — a grade
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. pit — in a race
  16. dip — to sink
  17. squash — the sport
  18. pitch — completely
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. row — to paddle
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. pit — a hole
  24. content — the amount

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