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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: rule · swing · mine · ball · stock · sharp · jam · content

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. rule — a law
  3. swing — in golf
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. ball — a great time
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. content — happy
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. swing — music
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. rule — government
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. content — the amount
  19. sharp — clever
  20. mine — for digging
  21. stock — shares
  22. swing — to play on
  23. stock — goods
  24. stock — a soup base

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