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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: bay · pound · club · lie · bat · wave · content · chair

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. content — happy
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. club — for golf
  5. chair — a leader
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. club — for dancing
  8. club — a group
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. pound — a weight
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. bat — the animal
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. lie — to recline
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. content — the amount
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. lie — an untruth

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