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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. content — the amount
  3. content — happy
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. ground — a position
  7. cap — of ice
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. rule — a law
  10. rule — government
  11. cap — a hat
  12. ground — crushed
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. swing — music
  15. chest — of your body
  16. cap — a lid
  17. firm — decided
  18. swing — in golf
  19. chest — a box
  20. firm — a company
  21. swing — to play on
  22. chest — of your body
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. ground — the earth

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