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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 120 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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. stock — goods
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. net — after costs
  5. cell — a phone
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. rule — a law
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. content — happy
  11. cell — in biology
  12. net — for catching
  13. content — the amount
  14. net — in sport
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. rule — government
  18. stock — shares

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