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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 hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. fall — the season
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. drill — a practice
  5. content — the amount
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. spell — letters
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. fall — to drop
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. fall — to drop
  12. content — happy
  13. bank — for money
  14. bank — for money
  15. rule — government
  16. spell — magic
  17. drill — army training
  18. bank — of a river
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. drill — the tool
  21. spell — a short time
  22. rule — a law
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. content — videos and posts

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