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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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468
Word bank
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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 get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. march — the month
  3. kick — in football
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. fine — all right
  6. march — the month
  7. root — the cause
  8. chair — a leader
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. content — happy
  11. root — of a plant
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. root — of a word
  14. content — the amount
  15. squash — the sport
  16. squash — to crush
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. fine — high quality
  19. march — music
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. squash — the vegetable

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