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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. rock — music
  3. chip — to eat
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. track — a song
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. staff — a stick
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. rock — a stone
  14. staff — employees
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. degree — from a university
  17. degree — temperature
  18. track — a path
  19. content — happy
  20. track — to keep track
  21. degree — an amount
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. content — the amount
  24. chip — for betting

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