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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. staff — employees
  3. content — happy
  4. staff — employees
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. content — the amount
  8. chip — for betting
  9. mate — a partner
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. staff — a stick
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. rock — a stone
  14. mate — a friend
  15. mine — for digging
  16. cell — a phone
  17. mate — to breed
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. chip — to eat
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. mine — an explosive

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