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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: dip · coach · prune · race · content · jam · kid · wake

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. race — humankind
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. kid — child
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. race — the arms race
  12. prune — to trim
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. content — happy
  15. race — a contest
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. kid — to tease
  19. prune — to trim
  20. dip — to sink
  21. content — the amount
  22. wake — a trail
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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