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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: content · safe · rest · cap · suit · band · root · chest

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. content — happy
  3. suit — in cards
  4. rest — what's left
  5. chest — of your body
  6. content — the amount
  7. rest — a break
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. cap — a hat
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. band — a music group
  12. cap — of ice
  13. suit — clothes
  14. root — of a plant
  15. suit — to fit
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. chest — of your body
  18. band — a ring
  19. root — the cause
  20. chest — a box
  21. rest — what's left
  22. cap — a lid
  23. root — of a word
  24. safe — out of danger

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