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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. branch — a division
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. field — for sport
  6. content — the amount
  7. mine — for digging
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. saw — the tool
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. track — a path
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. track — to keep track
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. rule — a law
  19. saw — the tool
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. track — a song
  22. field — a subject
  23. field — farmland
  24. content — happy

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