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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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. chair — a leader
  3. rash — hasty
  4. current — of water
  5. rash — a series
  6. board — a committee
  7. court — of a king
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. court — for sport
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. board — to get on
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. content — happy
  18. season — of the year
  19. current — happening now
  20. foot — a measure
  21. current — electric
  22. season — in sport
  23. court — of law
  24. content — the amount

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