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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 · calf · pop · chest · jam · cold · pitcher · date

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. chest — of your body
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. content — the amount
  10. cold — an illness
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. chest — of your body
  13. content — happy
  14. chest — a box
  15. pop — soda
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cold — not warm
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. pop — music
  20. date — the fruit
  21. pop — to visit
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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