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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. content — happy
  3. land — ground
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. squash — the sport
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. hand — in cards
  9. squash — to crush
  10. hand — help
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. deal — to handle
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. land — a country
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. content — the amount
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. chair — a leader
  24. land — to come down

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