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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: rock · kid · bowl · content · sharp · pit · cell · mark

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. cell — in biology
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. mark — a grade
  7. content — the amount
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. mark — a trace
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. rock — music
  13. cell — a phone
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. kid — to tease
  16. pit — in a race
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. rock — a stone
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. content — happy
  22. sharp — clever
  23. pit — a hole
  24. kid — child

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