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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: suit · wave · cold · content · bowl · pop · chair · bear

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. cold — an illness
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. chair — a leader
  7. content — happy
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — the animal
  10. cold — not warm
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. suit — in cards
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. pop — soda
  16. pop — to visit
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. suit — clothes
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. suit — to fit
  21. pop — music
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. content — the amount

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