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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. file — a tool
  4. file — a line of people
  5. game — a match
  6. content — happy
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. pop — to visit
  10. tear — to rip
  11. tear — from crying
  12. pop — soda
  13. chair — a leader
  14. tear — from crying
  15. pop — music
  16. game — wild animals
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. file — a document
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. content — videos and posts

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