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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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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: cold · content · rule · spell · dip · perch · chair · stand

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. dip — to sink
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. content — happy
  7. perch — the fish
  8. spell — magic
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. spell — letters
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. cold — an illness
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. stand — to bear
  15. cold — not warm
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. rule — a law
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. spell — a short time
  22. rule — government
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. chair — a leader

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