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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. degree — an amount
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. chip — for betting
  8. can — a tin
  9. season — of the year
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. degree — from a university
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — for digging
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. chip — to eat
  17. content — the amount
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. lean — thin
  20. degree — temperature
  21. can — a tin
  22. can — to be able to
  23. lean — to bend
  24. season — in sport

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