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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. staff — employees
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. content — the amount
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. rock — music
  7. fall — the season
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — to drop
  10. club — for golf
  11. staff — employees
  12. net — after costs
  13. club — for dancing
  14. charge — in control
  15. rock — a stone
  16. charge — electricity
  17. craft — boats
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. net — in sport
  20. net — for catching
  21. club — a group
  22. craft — a skill
  23. charge — a price
  24. staff — a stick

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