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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: chair · deal · content · craft · bear · scale · rock · kid

  1. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. craft — a skill
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. craft — boats
  6. content — the amount
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. kid — to tease
  9. kid — child
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. rock — music
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. content — happy
  18. deal — to handle
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. bear — the animal
  21. scale — size or range
  22. chair — a leader
  23. rock — a stone
  24. scale — in music

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