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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: object · saw · wake · kick · content · chair · can · arm

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. content — the amount
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. saw — the tool
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. content — happy
  11. can — a tin
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. object — a thing
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. can — to be able to
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. wake — a trail
  18. saw — the tool
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. object — to protest
  21. can — a tin
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. kick — in football
  24. object — an aim

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