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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. file — a line of people
  3. swing — in golf
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. swing — music
  6. content — happy
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. stock — goods
  10. rule — a law
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. bore — to tire
  13. stock — a soup base
  14. file — a tool
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. content — the amount
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. file — a document
  20. stock — shares
  21. swing — to play on
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. rule — government

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