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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 120 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: last · content · pop · racket · cabinet · pitch · bound · deal

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. pop — soda
  3. bound — tied together
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. bound — obliged
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. bound — certain
  10. last — final
  11. last — finally
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. content — the amount
  15. pitch — completely
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. last — to go on
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. pop — to visit
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. deal — to handle
  23. pop — music
  24. racket — for tennis

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