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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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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The moon will ________________ and wane.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. chair — a leader
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. prune — to trim
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. present — a gift
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. pit — a hole
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. drill — a practice
  13. present — the time now
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. present — there
  16. drill — the tool
  17. content — happy
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. prune — to trim
  21. pit — in a race
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. drill — army training
  24. wax — to grow

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