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

Word bank: stand · bat · content · deal · chair · rest · row · bear

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. content — happy
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. chair — a leader
  7. rest — what's left
  8. deal — to handle
  9. row — to paddle
  10. bat — the animal
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. rest — a break
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bear — the animal
  18. content — the amount
  19. rest — what's left
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. row — a line
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. stand — to bear
  24. bear — to put up with

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