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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. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a tool
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. content — happy
  5. club — for dancing
  6. rule — a law
  7. object — to protest
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. club — for golf
  10. land — to come down
  11. mark — a trace
  12. file — a line of people
  13. rash — hasty
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. rule — government
  16. rash — a series
  17. object — an aim
  18. mark — a grade
  19. file — a document
  20. land — ground
  21. content — the amount
  22. land — a country
  23. object — a thing
  24. club — a group

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