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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. content — the amount
  3. snap — to click
  4. bore — to tire
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. ground — the earth
  7. ground — a position
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. current — happening now
  10. land — a country
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. land — ground
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. bore — to drill
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. stand — to bear
  18. current — electric
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. current — of water
  21. ground — crushed
  22. land — to come down
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. stand — on your feet

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