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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 116 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 works in a ________________ mill.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. ball — a great time
  3. swing — to play on
  4. rule — a law
  5. rule — government
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. ball — a dance
  9. swing — music
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. saw — the tool
  12. content — happy
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. mine — for digging
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. face — to point toward
  17. face — part of the head
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. swing — in golf
  22. face — to confront
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. content — the amount

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