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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: content · toast · straw · pit · game · chair · march · safe

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. toast — bread
  3. game — wild animals
  4. pit — in a race
  5. game — a match
  6. march — the month
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. content — the amount
  11. pit — a hole
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. chair — a leader
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. content — happy
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. march — the month
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. march — music
  24. chair — a professorship

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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