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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. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — in a computer
  2. content — the amount
  3. field — for sport
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. field — a subject
  6. march — the month
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — an illness
  9. chip — to eat
  10. face — to confront
  11. march — music
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. face — to point toward
  14. content — happy
  15. march — the month
  16. cold — not warm
  17. bound — obliged
  18. field — farmland
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. face — part of the head
  21. chip — for betting
  22. bound — certain
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. bound — tied together

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