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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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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: content · swing · cabinet · chip · fine · sharp · racket · bark

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. fine — all right
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. chip — to eat
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. bark — to shout
  8. fine — high quality
  9. content — the amount
  10. swing — in golf
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. chip — for betting
  13. swing — to play on
  14. content — happy
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. sharp — clever
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. swing — music
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. bark — of a tree

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