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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. land — ground
  4. chip — to eat
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. content — the amount
  7. chip — for betting
  8. spring — of water
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. net — for catching
  11. present — the time now
  12. content — happy
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. land — a country
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. present — there
  17. present — a gift
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. spring — a coil
  20. spring — the season
  21. land — to come down
  22. net — after costs
  23. net — in sport
  24. chair — a professorship

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