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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. track — a song
  3. track — to keep track
  4. mate — a friend
  5. rule — a law
  6. row — a line
  7. race — the arms race
  8. rule — government
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. mate — a partner
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. track — a path
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — in cards
  18. content — happy
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. race — humankind
  21. race — a contest
  22. hand — help
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. mate — to breed

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