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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. degree — from a university
  3. rule — government
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. court — for sport
  7. prune — to trim
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. content — happy
  11. prune — to trim
  12. court — of law
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. degree — temperature
  15. present — a gift
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. present — there
  18. court — of a king
  19. content — the amount
  20. degree — an amount
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. present — the time now
  24. prune — the fruit

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