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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. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. That was ________________ to happen.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. jam — to spread on bread
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. bound — certain
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. wake — a trail
  6. bound — obliged
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. content — happy
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. chair — a leader
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. race — a contest
  14. content — the amount
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. bound — tied together
  17. race — humankind
  18. rule — a law
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. race — the arms race
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. rule — government

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