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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. When was this ________________ built?
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. deal — to handle
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. net — for catching
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. track — to keep track
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. content — happy
  9. spell — a short time
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. net — in sport
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. track — a song
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. cell — in biology
  17. spell — letters
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. cell — a phone
  20. track — a path
  21. spell — magic
  22. bat — the animal
  23. content — the amount
  24. net — after costs

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