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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 120 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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. march — the month
  4. march — the month
  5. tear — from crying
  6. mug — to rob
  7. pitch — completely
  8. content — happy
  9. rule — government
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. tear — from crying
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. hand — help
  15. tear — to rip
  16. mug — a face
  17. content — the amount
  18. hand — in cards
  19. march — music
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. mug — a cup

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