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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. tube — a container
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. staff — employees
  6. content — happy
  7. cold — an illness
  8. staff — employees
  9. chip — to eat
  10. tube — the underground
  11. rule — government
  12. chip — for betting
  13. bank — of a river
  14. bank — for money
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bulb — for light
  18. cold — not warm
  19. content — the amount
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. staff — a stick
  23. rule — a law
  24. bulb — of a plant

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