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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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. club — for golf
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. fall — to drop
  5. charge — a price
  6. court — of a king
  7. court — for sport
  8. chair — a leader
  9. content — happy
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. content — the amount
  12. chip — to eat
  13. club — for dancing
  14. field — a subject
  15. field — farmland
  16. charge — electricity
  17. chip — for betting
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. charge — in control
  20. court — of law
  21. fall — to drop
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. fall — the season
  24. field — for sport

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