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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. club — for dancing
  4. can — to be able to
  5. bat — the animal
  6. deal — to handle
  7. pound — a weight
  8. can — a tin
  9. cue — a signal
  10. club — a group
  11. cue — a hint
  12. content — happy
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. cue — for pool
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. content — the amount
  19. can — a tin
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. club — for golf
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. chair — a professorship

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