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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. content — happy
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. content — the amount
  8. net — for catching
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. chip — to eat
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. present — the time now
  13. scale — in music
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. present — a gift
  16. net — in sport
  17. stand — on your feet
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. present — there
  21. scale — size or range
  22. chip — for betting
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. stand — to bear

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