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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. pop — music
  3. kick — in football
  4. sharp — with an edge
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. spell — a short time
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. scale — in music
  10. content — the amount
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. content — happy
  15. present — a gift
  16. sharp — clever
  17. spell — letters
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. present — the time now
  20. spell — magic
  21. pop — soda
  22. pop — to visit
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. scale — size or range

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