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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. bound — certain
  3. roll — a cake
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. roll — a list
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. chair — a leader
  8. bass — low music
  9. bass — the fish
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. degree — temperature
  12. degree — an amount
  13. degree — from a university
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. bound — tied together
  18. content — happy
  19. content — the amount
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. lie — to recline
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. bound — obliged

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