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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 116 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
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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 · chair · spring · wound · net · charge · mine · rock

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. spring — of water
  4. spring — a coil
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. rock — music
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. wound — an injury
  11. chair — a leader
  12. content — happy
  13. charge — electricity
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. wound — an injury
  16. net — in sport
  17. net — after costs
  18. charge — in control
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. content — the amount
  21. mine — for digging
  22. rock — a stone
  23. spring — the season
  24. charge — a price

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