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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 120 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 got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. content — happy
  7. wound — an injury
  8. scale — in music
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. fine — high quality
  12. charge — electricity
  13. fine — all right
  14. charge — a price
  15. rule — a law
  16. hand — help
  17. hand — in cards
  18. rule — government
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. scale — size or range
  21. charge — in control
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. content — the amount
  24. wound — an injury

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