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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. content — the amount
  3. mate — to breed
  4. mug — a cup
  5. mate — a friend
  6. spring — of water
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. rest — what's left
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. drill — army training
  12. kid — to tease
  13. drill — the tool
  14. rest — a break
  15. squash — the sport
  16. squash — to crush
  17. drill — a practice
  18. kid — child
  19. spring — a coil
  20. mate — a partner
  21. content — happy
  22. mug — a face
  23. mug — to rob
  24. spring — the season

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