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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 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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. chair — a leader
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. game — wild animals
  6. bass — low music
  7. suit — in cards
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. suit — clothes
  12. bound — tied together
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. bass — the fish
  16. bound — obliged
  17. suit — to fit
  18. row — a line
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. game — a match
  21. row — to paddle
  22. content — happy
  23. bound — certain
  24. content — the amount

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