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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. dip — to sink
  3. mark — a grade
  4. prune — to trim
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. game — a match
  7. mate — a partner
  8. fine — all right
  9. mate — to breed
  10. content — the amount
  11. fine — high quality
  12. game — wild animals
  13. race — a contest
  14. mark — a trace
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. race — the arms race
  19. prune — to trim
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. mate — a friend
  24. race — humankind

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