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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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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: content · rule · firm · cell · club · fine · stem · band

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. fine — high quality
  3. cell — in biology
  4. rule — government
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. club — for golf
  7. fine — all right
  8. band — a music group
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. stem — to come from
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. rule — a law
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. club — a group
  16. firm — a company
  17. club — for dancing
  18. cell — a phone
  19. content — the amount
  20. band — a ring
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. firm — steady
  23. firm — decided
  24. fine — a penalty

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