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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. march — music
  3. can — a tin
  4. can — a tin
  5. snap — to click
  6. can — to be able to
  7. march — the month
  8. rule — government
  9. march — the month
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. cell — a phone
  13. rule — a law
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — the tool
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. cell — in biology
  18. saw — past of 'see'

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