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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: chair · race · content · stick · pit · cabinet

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. chair — a leader
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. race — humankind
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. pit — a hole
  10. race — the arms race
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. race — a contest
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. pit — in a race
  18. content — the amount

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