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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. content — happy
  3. bulb — for light
  4. rule — government
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. field — for sport
  7. bulb — for light
  8. swing — in golf
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. rush — hurry
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. content — the amount
  13. pound — a weight
  14. swing — music
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. field — a subject
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. swing — to play on
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. rule — a law

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