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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 116 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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. present — the time now
  3. content — the amount
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. board — a committee
  7. board — to get on
  8. staff — employees
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. stock — shares
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. pound — a weight
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. present — there
  16. staff — a stick
  17. staff — employees
  18. present — a gift
  19. game — a match
  20. game — wild animals
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. stock — goods
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. fan — to cool the air

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