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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. bulb — for light
  3. snap — to click
  4. press — a publisher
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. press — to push
  8. content — the amount
  9. content — happy
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. press — newspapers
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — the season
  17. fall — to drop
  18. track — a path
  19. track — to keep track
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. track — a song

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