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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. rule — government
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. rule — a law
  7. cold — an illness
  8. rash — a series
  9. cold — not warm
  10. rash — hasty
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. craft — boats
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. fork — in a road
  20. content — happy
  21. foot — a measure
  22. craft — a skill
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. foot — the bottom

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