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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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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 · march · content · stick · swing · kick

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  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. march — the month
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. kick — in football
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. content — happy
  9. chair — a leader
  10. swing — to play on
  11. march — the month
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. march — music
  14. swing — in golf
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. swing — music
  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