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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. rule — a law
  3. rule — government
  4. ground — crushed
  5. bound — certain
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. season — of the year
  10. ground — the earth
  11. season — in sport
  12. clip — for paper
  13. bank — of a river
  14. bank — for money
  15. clip — to cut
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. clip — a video
  18. bound — tied together
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. bank — for money
  21. ground — a position
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. bound — obliged
  24. content — the amount

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