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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 116 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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. pit — a hole
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — moving air
  5. ball — a great time
  6. pit — in a race
  7. content — the amount
  8. rule — a law
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. rule — government
  16. chip — to eat
  17. chip — for betting
  18. ball — a dance
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. content — happy
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. lie — to recline

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