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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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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: chair · suit · sharp · pound · mine · content · bowl · wind

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  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. sharp — clever
  2. pound — a weight
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. suit — to fit
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. content — happy
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. content — the amount
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. wind — moving air
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. mine — for digging
  21. suit — clothes
  22. wind — moving air
  23. suit — in cards
  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