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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: date · kick · file · pitcher · season · row · swing · content

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. content — the amount
  3. season — of the year
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. swing — music
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. season — in sport
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. swing — to play on
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. file — a line of people
  12. file — a tool
  13. row — a line
  14. file — a document
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. kick — in football
  17. content — happy
  18. date — the fruit
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. swing — in golf
  24. row — to paddle

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