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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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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: file · content · snap · key · club · rash · fan · chair

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. snap — to click
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. club — for dancing
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. file — a tool
  7. file — a line of people
  8. club — for golf
  9. chair — a leader
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. rash — hasty
  15. content — happy
  16. key — the most important part
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. key — for a lock
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. key — in music
  21. rash — a series
  22. club — a group
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. file — a document

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