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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. toast — bread
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. bass — low music
  6. content — the amount
  7. bass — the instrument
  8. bass — the fish
  9. hand — help
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. row — to paddle
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. content — happy
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. sharp — clever
  20. row — a line
  21. hand — in cards
  22. capital — a city
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. deal — to handle

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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