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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 120 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. prune — to trim
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. chest — a box
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. pit — a hole
  9. bank — for money
  10. pit — in a race
  11. content — the amount
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. chest — of your body
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. bank — of a river
  19. row — to paddle
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bank — for money
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. row — a line
  24. content — happy

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