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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.

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: chest · hide · content · charge · net · stand · chair · saw

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. saw — the tool
  3. net — after costs
  4. charge — electricity
  5. charge — a price
  6. chair — a leader
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. content — happy
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. chest — of your body
  13. charge — in control
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. saw — the tool
  16. content — the amount
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. chest — of your body
  21. net — in sport
  22. net — for catching
  23. chest — a box
  24. chair — to sit on

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