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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. chair — a leader
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. content — happy
  5. fall — to drop
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. cell — in biology
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. kick — in football
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. fall — the season
  15. chip — to eat
  16. content — the amount
  17. cell — a phone
  18. snap — to click
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. chip — for betting
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. fall — to drop

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