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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. content — happy
  3. content — the amount
  4. board — a committee
  5. court — for sport
  6. board — to get on
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. spell — letters
  9. suit — in cards
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. rest — what's left
  12. suit — to fit
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. shower — rain
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. stem — to come from
  18. court — of a king
  19. spell — magic
  20. suit — clothes
  21. court — of law
  22. spell — a short time
  23. shower — to wash
  24. rest — what's left

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