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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 120 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: bat · suit · rule · kid · rock · content · ground · wound

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. suit — clothes
  6. ground — crushed
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. suit — in cards
  9. ground — the earth
  10. wound — an injury
  11. content — happy
  12. rock — a stone
  13. wound — an injury
  14. rule — government
  15. kid — to tease
  16. rock — music
  17. kid — child
  18. bat — the animal
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. suit — to fit
  22. rule — a law
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. content — the amount

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