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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 116 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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. The tickets are free of ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. firm — a company
  3. bound — tied together
  4. degree — from a university
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. charge — a price
  7. face — part of the head
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. face — to confront
  10. degree — temperature
  11. bound — obliged
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. content — the amount
  14. perch — the fish
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. firm — steady
  17. firm — decided
  18. face — to point toward
  19. degree — an amount
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. charge — electricity
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. bound — certain
  24. charge — in control

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