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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. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. fall — to drop
  4. press — a publisher
  5. fall — the season
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. swing — music
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. press — to push
  15. swing — to play on
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. press — newspapers
  18. chair — a leader
  19. fall — to drop
  20. swing — in golf
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. content — the amount

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