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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. content — happy
  3. net — for catching
  4. bound — obliged
  5. pit — a fruit stone
  6. field — a subject
  7. content — the amount
  8. object — to protest
  9. bound — certain
  10. field — for sport
  11. net — after costs
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — of your body
  14. pit — in a race
  15. club — for dancing
  16. object — an aim
  17. field — farmland
  18. club — for golf
  19. net — in sport
  20. object — a thing
  21. club — a group
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. bound — tied together
  24. pit — a hole

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