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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 120 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.

Words on the sheet
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: cabinet · object · chip · content · pitch · season · bark · mine

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. chip — for betting
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. object — a thing
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. season — in sport
  7. pitch — completely
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. object — an aim
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. chip — to eat
  13. mine — for digging
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. content — the amount
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. bark — to shout
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. season — of the year
  24. object — to protest

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