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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. ground — crushed
  3. chip — to eat
  4. tube — the underground
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. rule — a law
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. tube — a container
  10. content — the amount
  11. bound — obliged
  12. bass — low music
  13. chip — for betting
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. bound — certain
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. content — happy
  19. bass — the fish
  20. ground — the earth
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. rule — government
  23. ground — a position
  24. bound — tied together

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