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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. current — electric
  4. staff — employees
  5. squash — the sport
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. present — the time now
  8. capital — money
  9. current — happening now
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. chest — a box
  12. chest — of your body
  13. capital — a city
  14. land — ground
  15. chest — of your body
  16. present — there
  17. squash — to crush
  18. content — the amount
  19. current — of water
  20. land — a country
  21. land — to come down
  22. staff — a stick
  23. content — happy
  24. staff — employees

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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