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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 120 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 put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. content — happy
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. ball — a great time
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. band — a ring
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. band — a music group
  11. cap — of ice
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. content — the amount
  15. chair — a leader
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. ball — a dance
  18. cap — a hat
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. cap — a lid
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. cabinet — ministers

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