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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 116 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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. cold — not warm
  3. tube — a container
  4. bank — for money
  5. bank — for money
  6. content — happy
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. rule — government
  9. wake — a trail
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. season — of the year
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. bank — of a river
  15. content — the amount
  16. scale — in music
  17. season — in sport
  18. rule — a law
  19. cold — an illness
  20. tube — the underground
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. wake — before a funeral

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