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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. roll — a cake
  3. march — the month
  4. jam — to spread on bread
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. rash — hasty
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. roll — a list
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. chair — a leader
  11. content — the amount
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. rash — a series
  15. foot — a measure
  16. jam — a tight spot
  17. march — the month
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. march — music
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. content — happy
  23. game — wild animals
  24. roll — on a roll

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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