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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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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: rock · rule · stem · content · mine · saw · lie · hand

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. rock — music
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. saw — the tool
  5. hand — help
  6. mine — for digging
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. rule — a law
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. lie — to recline
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. content — the amount
  15. rock — a stone
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. content — happy
  19. hand — in cards
  20. saw — the tool
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. stem — to come from
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. content — videos and posts

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