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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. cell — in biology
  3. rule — government
  4. last — to go on
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. fine — all right
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. content — the amount
  9. mate — a friend
  10. last — final
  11. mate — a partner
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. mate — to breed
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. rule — a law
  17. fine — high quality
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. cell — a phone
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. content — happy
  24. fork — in a road

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