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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: field · rule · squash · fall · bowl · track · last · content

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. squash — to crush
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. last — finally
  6. last — to go on
  7. track — to keep track
  8. field — for sport
  9. track — a song
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. field — farmland
  12. content — the amount
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. last — final
  15. content — happy
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — to drop
  18. squash — the sport
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. field — a subject
  21. fall — the season
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. track — a path
  24. rule — government

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