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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. tube — a container
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. cue — for pool
  8. fork — in a road
  9. cue — a signal
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. content — the amount
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. cue — a hint
  16. snap — to click
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. rash — a series
  19. tube — the underground
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. rash — hasty
  24. coach — a trainer

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