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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rule · bat · mate · calf · rush · content · stick · track

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. track — a path
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. mate — to breed
  8. content — happy
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. track — to keep track
  11. rush — hurry
  12. mate — a partner
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. bat — the animal
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. rule — a law
  19. rule — government
  20. mate — a friend
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. track — a song
  23. content — the amount
  24. calf — a young 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