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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: chair · ground · hide · net · bay · capital · rest · content

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. rest — what's left
  3. net — in sport
  4. ground — the earth
  5. ground — a position
  6. content — the amount
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. rest — a break
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. net — for catching
  13. content — happy
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. capital — a city
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. capital — money
  18. ground — crushed
  19. net — after costs
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. rest — what's left
  23. chair — a leader
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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