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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 120 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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  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. cabinet — ministers
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. rule — government
  6. shower — to wash
  7. sharp — clever
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. rule — a law
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. content — happy
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. shower — rain
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. hand — help
  21. hand — in cards
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. fan — a supporter
  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