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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. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. last — finally
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. content — the amount
  7. last — final
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. march — the month
  11. last — to go on
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. craft — a skill
  15. craft — boats
  16. dip — to sink
  17. pound — a weight
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. march — music
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. march — the month

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