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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bear · object · content · cell · rule · rock

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. rock — music
  3. rule — a law
  4. rock — a stone
  5. cell — a phone
  6. rule — government
  7. content — happy
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. object — to protest
  13. bear — the animal
  14. object — a thing
  15. content — the amount
  16. object — an aim
  17. cell — in biology
  18. bear — the animal

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