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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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. lie — to recline
  3. hand — in cards
  4. content — happy
  5. hand — help
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. present — the time now
  14. content — the amount
  15. present — a gift
  16. court — of a king
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. capital — a city
  19. capital — money
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. court — for sport
  22. court — of law
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. temple — side of the head

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