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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: prune · chair · straw · deal · current · leaves · chest · content

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. content — happy
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. chest — of your body
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. current — of water
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. deal — to handle
  14. content — the amount
  15. current — electric
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — a box
  18. prune — to trim
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. chair — a leader
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. current — happening now
  23. prune — to trim
  24. straw — a straw man

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