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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. content — happy
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. pit — in a race
  5. charge — in control
  6. root — of a word
  7. cold — not warm
  8. prune — to trim
  9. cold — an illness
  10. bass — low music
  11. roll — a cake
  12. charge — electricity
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. content — the amount
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. root — of a plant
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. bass — the fish
  20. roll — a list
  21. prune — to trim
  22. charge — a price
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. root — the cause

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