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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. wind — moving air
  4. content — the amount
  5. bass — low music
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. fork — in a road
  9. content — happy
  10. field — farmland
  11. rash — a series
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. field — for sport
  14. rule — a law
  15. rule — government
  16. wind — moving air
  17. rash — hasty
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. bass — the fish
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. kick — in football
  24. content — videos and posts

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