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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: season · fan · row · rule · drill · game · squash · content

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. season — in sport
  3. squash — the sport
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. rule — government
  6. drill — a practice
  7. rule — a law
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. content — happy
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. game — a match
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. season — of the year
  16. content — the amount
  17. row — to paddle
  18. row — a line
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. drill — the tool
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. game — wild animals
  24. squash — to crush

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