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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. current — electric
  4. net — after costs
  5. suit — in cards
  6. net — for catching
  7. spring — a coil
  8. suit — to fit
  9. content — the amount
  10. suit — clothes
  11. prune — to trim
  12. spring — the season
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. spring — of water
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. current — happening now
  17. kick — in football
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. chair — a leader
  20. content — happy
  21. prune — to trim
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. net — in sport
  24. current — of water

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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