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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. march — the month
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. land — ground
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. march — the month
  7. content — the amount
  8. land — to come down
  9. land — a country
  10. hand — in cards
  11. hand — help
  12. march — music
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. object — an aim
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. object — a thing
  21. object — to protest
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. content — happy
  24. chair — a leader

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