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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 116 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kid · ruler · pop · content · cell · bore

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. content — happy
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. pop — music
  7. content — the amount
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. cell — in biology
  10. kid — child
  11. bore — to drill
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. pop — to visit
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. bore — to tire
  17. kid — to tease
  18. cell — a phone

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