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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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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: wound · racket · row · content · press · temple · rest · rule

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. content — happy
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. rule — government
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. content — the amount
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. rest — a break
  10. row — a line
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. rest — what's left
  13. wound — an injury
  14. rule — a law
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. press — a publisher
  17. press — to push
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. row — to paddle
  21. rest — what's left
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. press — newspapers
  24. temple — side of the head

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