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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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. chair — a leader
  3. rule — government
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. bat — the animal
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. rash — a series
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. suit — in cards
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. fork — in a road
  16. rule — a law
  17. content — the amount
  18. suit — clothes
  19. file — a line of people
  20. rash — hasty
  21. suit — to fit
  22. file — a tool
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. content — happy

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