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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. The tickets are free of ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. charge — in control
  3. drill — a practice
  4. content — happy
  5. pit — a hole
  6. drill — army training
  7. chest — a box
  8. dip — to sink
  9. chest — of your body
  10. spring — a coil
  11. drill — the tool
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. charge — electricity
  16. chest — of your body
  17. spring — of water
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. charge — a price
  20. spring — the season
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. pit — in a race
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. chair — a leader

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