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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. roll — a list
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. land — to come down
  6. content — the amount
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. craft — a skill
  9. rule — a law
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. lie — to recline
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. craft — boats
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. rule — government
  17. cold — an illness
  18. pitch — completely
  19. content — happy
  20. land — a country
  21. land — ground
  22. roll — a cake
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. pitch — a sports field

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