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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.

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: content · chest · degree · calf · roll · date · can · swing

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. content — happy
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. can — a tin
  5. degree — from a university
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. swing — to play on
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. date — the fruit
  11. degree — an amount
  12. chest — a box
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. chest — of your body
  15. roll — a cake
  16. roll — a list
  17. chest — of your body
  18. can — a tin
  19. swing — music
  20. degree — temperature
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. swing — in golf
  23. can — to be able to
  24. calf — a young animal

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