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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. mate — a friend
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. squash — the sport
  8. mate — to breed
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. hand — help
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. ball — a great time
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. content — the amount
  18. squash — to crush
  19. mate — a partner
  20. hand — in cards
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. fork — in a road
  23. pitch — completely
  24. ball — a dance

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