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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. net — in sport
  4. rule — government
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. net — after costs
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. plane — a tool
  11. board — a committee
  12. mine — for digging
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. game — wild animals
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. rule — a law
  17. board — to get on
  18. game — a match
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. content — happy
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. net — for catching
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. fan — a supporter

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