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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: content · current · chair · wound · march · craft · kid · chip

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. kid — to tease
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. current — of water
  5. chip — to eat
  6. content — the amount
  7. chair — a leader
  8. march — the month
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. wound — an injury
  12. craft — a skill
  13. wound — an injury
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. chip — for betting
  18. content — happy
  19. current — happening now
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. kid — child
  22. march — music
  23. craft — boats
  24. current — electric

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