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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: cold · march · lie · content · pitcher · mate · scale · cabinet

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. march — the month
  5. mate — a partner
  6. cold — an illness
  7. march — the month
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. march — music
  10. scale — in music
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. content — the amount
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. lie — to recline
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. cold — not warm
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. mate — a friend
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. mate — to breed
  23. scale — size or range
  24. content — happy

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