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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 120 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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. chest — a box
  3. chair — a leader
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. sharp — clever
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. bass — the fish
  11. bulb — for light
  12. content — happy
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. chest — of your body
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. hand — help
  18. hand — in cards
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. bass — low music
  21. bulb — for light
  22. chest — of your body
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. stem — to come from

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