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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. march — the month
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. press — a publisher
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. wake — a trail
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. rule — government
  11. rule — a law
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. shower — rain
  14. march — the month
  15. content — happy
  16. jam — to spread on bread
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. press — to push
  20. shower — to wash
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. march — music
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. press — newspapers

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