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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. rock — music
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. field — a subject
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. squash — to crush
  8. field — farmland
  9. fine — high quality
  10. field — for sport
  11. rule — government
  12. branch — a division
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. rock — a stone
  15. rule — a law
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. row — a line
  19. content — happy
  20. row — to paddle
  21. squash — the sport
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. content — the amount
  24. row — a quarrel

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