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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. content — happy
  3. cap — a lid
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. cap — a hat
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. cap — of ice
  11. bound — obliged
  12. row — to paddle
  13. staff — a stick
  14. staff — employees
  15. foot — a measure
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. cell — in biology
  18. staff — employees
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. bound — tied together
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. bound — certain
  23. cell — a phone
  24. row — a line

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