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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: object · sharp · content · rule · tear · kick · pop · row

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. object — an aim
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. rule — government
  6. content — the amount
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. object — to protest
  9. tear — from crying
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. tear — to rip
  12. object — a thing
  13. row — a line
  14. pop — to visit
  15. pop — soda
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. sharp — clever
  18. tear — from crying
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. pop — music
  22. row — to paddle
  23. content — happy
  24. kick — in football

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