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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pitcher · key · leaves · game · board · chair · cold · content

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. key — the most important part
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. content — the amount
  9. cold — an illness
  10. board — a committee
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. game — a match
  15. game — wild animals
  16. board — to get on
  17. key — for a lock
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. chair — a leader
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. key — in music
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. content — happy

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