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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: pound · tube · content · suit · mine · chest · bowl · present

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. chest — of your body
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. content — happy
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. suit — in cards
  9. present — a gift
  10. chest — of your body
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. suit — to fit
  13. pound — a weight
  14. present — the time now
  15. mine — for digging
  16. suit — clothes
  17. tube — a container
  18. present — there
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. chest — a box
  21. tube — the underground
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. bowl — a football final

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