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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. mark — a trace
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. sharp — clever
  5. kid — child
  6. rule — government
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. mine — for digging
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. rule — a law
  15. pit — a hole
  16. content — happy
  17. pit — in a race
  18. mark — a grade
  19. content — the amount
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. branch — a division
  24. kid — to tease

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