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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. rule — a law
  3. content — happy
  4. ground — the earth
  5. board — to get on
  6. rule — government
  7. content — the amount
  8. board — a committee
  9. cue — a hint
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. ground — crushed
  12. rash — a series
  13. march — music
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. ground — a position
  16. cue — a signal
  17. rash — hasty
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. march — the month
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. pit — in a race
  22. march — the month
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. cue — for pool

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