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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. content — happy
  3. firm — steady
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. cap — a hat
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. firm — decided
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. perch — the fish
  16. bat — the animal
  17. cap — a lid
  18. firm — a company
  19. snap — to click
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. kick — in football
  24. content — the amount

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