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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. rule — a law
  3. spring — a coil
  4. foot — a measure
  5. spring — the season
  6. spring — of water
  7. ground — crushed
  8. content — happy
  9. ground — the earth
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. band — a music group
  12. band — a ring
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. cue — a signal
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. cue — a hint
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. wake — a trail
  19. cue — for pool
  20. ground — a position
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. rule — government
  24. content — the amount

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