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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. content — the amount
  3. rule — a law
  4. row — a line
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. stand — to bear
  10. ground — a position
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. ground — crushed
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ground — the earth
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. rule — government
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. row — to paddle
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. nail — for a hammer

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