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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. bear — the animal
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. lean — to bend
  7. court — of law
  8. spell — a short time
  9. bear — the animal
  10. content — happy
  11. ground — crushed
  12. court — for sport
  13. lean — thin
  14. spell — letters
  15. content — the amount
  16. rule — a law
  17. ground — a position
  18. rule — government
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. mine — for digging
  21. court — of a king
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. spell — magic
  24. ground — the earth

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