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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. rule — a law
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. court — of a king
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. deal — to handle
  10. pound — a weight
  11. court — for sport
  12. rush — hurry
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. content — the amount
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. court — of law
  22. squash — to crush
  23. content — happy
  24. squash — the sport

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