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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. hand — help
  3. bound — tied together
  4. rash — a series
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. bound — obliged
  10. hand — in cards
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. content — the amount
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bound — certain
  15. wound — an injury
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. chair — a leader
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. bank — for money
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. content — happy
  22. bank — of a river
  23. bank — for money
  24. rash — hasty

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