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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. cell — in biology
  3. rule — a law
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. land — ground
  8. cell — a phone
  9. rule — government
  10. kid — to tease
  11. land — a country
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. content — happy
  15. land — to come down
  16. dip — to sink
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. kid — child
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. stand — to bear
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. fan — a supporter

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