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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. ball — a great time
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. band — a ring
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. content — the amount
  17. pound — a weight
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. plane — a tool
  20. band — a music group
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. snap — to click
  23. ball — a dance
  24. wax — to grow

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