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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. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. charge — a price
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. charge — in control
  10. rule — government
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. content — happy
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. capital — money
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. bat — the animal
  19. charge — electricity
  20. capital — a city
  21. rule — a law
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. racket — for tennis

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