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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  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. fine — all right
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. fine — high quality
  4. rule — a law
  5. spell — a short time
  6. content — happy
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. hand — in cards
  9. spell — letters
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. perch — the fish
  13. pit — in a race
  14. spell — magic
  15. pit — a hole
  16. rash — a series
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. rash — hasty
  20. hand — help
  21. content — the amount
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. rule — government

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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