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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. content — the amount
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. content — happy
  7. kick — in football
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. chair — a leader
  10. tear — from crying
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. tear — from crying
  15. tear — to rip
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. ruler — for measuring

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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