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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. mate — to breed
  3. track — to keep track
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. track — a song
  12. track — a path
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. dip — to sink
  17. content — the amount
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. mate — a friend
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. mate — a partner
  22. lie — to recline
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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