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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. chair — a leader
  3. pop — to visit
  4. bound — certain
  5. game — a match
  6. content — happy
  7. fine — all right
  8. bound — obliged
  9. pop — music
  10. pop — soda
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. content — the amount
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. fine — high quality
  15. charge — in control
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. game — wild animals
  18. charge — electricity
  19. spell — a short time
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. charge — a price
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. spell — letters
  24. bound — tied together

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