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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — an injury
  8. content — the amount
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. date — the fruit
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. hand — help
  14. press — to push
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. bass — low music
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. hand — in cards
  19. press — a publisher
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. bass — the fish
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. press — newspapers
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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