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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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Word bank
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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: rash · wave · cold · bound · row · toast · content · mine

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. row — a line
  3. content — happy
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. toast — bread
  6. row — to paddle
  7. toast — a drink to someone
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. cold — not warm
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. bound — tied together
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. content — the amount
  16. rash — hasty
  17. bound — certain
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. bound — obliged
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. cold — an illness
  23. rash — a series
  24. mine — for digging

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