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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 120 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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. content — the amount
  3. rash — hasty
  4. branch — a division
  5. content — happy
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. craft — boats
  8. spell — a short time
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. charge — electricity
  11. kid — to tease
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. spell — magic
  16. charge — in control
  17. spell — letters
  18. charge — a price
  19. craft — a skill
  20. rash — a series
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. kid — child
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. stand — to bear

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