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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. wound — an injury
  3. present — the time now
  4. band — a ring
  5. wound — an injury
  6. chest — a box
  7. saw — the tool
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. content — happy
  10. saw — the tool
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. stock — shares
  14. chest — of your body
  15. band — a music group
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. present — there
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. stock — goods
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. content — the amount
  24. chest — of your body

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