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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. chip — for betting
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. court — of a king
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. court — for sport
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. net — for catching
  10. charge — electricity
  11. charge — a price
  12. chip — to eat
  13. court — of law
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. charge — in control
  16. root — the cause
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. net — after costs
  19. branch — a division
  20. root — of a word
  21. root — of a plant
  22. net — in sport
  23. content — the amount
  24. chip — in a computer

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