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

Word bank: tear · content · wake · bay · rule · bowl

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. content — happy
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. tear — from crying
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. tear — from crying
  11. rule — government
  12. wake — a trail
  13. content — the amount
  14. tear — to rip
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. rule — a law
  18. wake — to stop sleeping

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