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

Word bank: content · march · spell · root · lie · wind · arm · pit

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. pit — a hole
  3. march — the month
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. wind — moving air
  6. march — the month
  7. root — of a word
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. root — of a plant
  10. root — the cause
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. spell — a short time
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. lie — to recline
  17. march — music
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. pit — in a race
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. content — the amount
  22. wind — moving air
  23. spell — letters
  24. spell — magic

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