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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. spell — a short time
  3. rule — government
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. content — the amount
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. craft — boats
  9. craft — a skill
  10. spell — magic
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. content — happy
  14. date — the fruit
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. snap — to click
  17. spell — letters
  18. rule — a law

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