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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: game · rush · wind · rule · wake · tube · land · content

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. rule — government
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. wind — moving air
  6. rule — a law
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. land — ground
  9. content — the amount
  10. wake — a trail
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. game — wild animals
  14. wind — moving air
  15. land — a country
  16. land — to come down
  17. rush — hurry
  18. tube — a container
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. game — a match
  21. content — happy
  22. tube — the underground
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. rule — to rule out

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