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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. content — the amount
  3. kid — child
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. pop — to visit
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. roll — a list
  9. pop — soda
  10. pop — music
  11. roll — a cake
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. content — happy
  16. band — a ring
  17. band — a music group
  18. kid — to tease
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. fork — in a road
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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