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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 116 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: wax · cold · pit · racket · rule · dip · content · fork

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. content — the amount
  3. wax — in the ear
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. pit — a hole
  7. cold — not warm
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. dip — to sink
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. pit — in a race
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. content — happy
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. rule — government
  21. rule — a law
  22. wax — to grow
  23. cold — an illness
  24. fork — in a road

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