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

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. last — finally
  3. can — to be able to
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. last — to go on
  6. can — a tin
  7. race — humankind
  8. race — a contest
  9. face — to confront
  10. charge — in control
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. march — music
  13. can — a tin
  14. last — final
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. charge — electricity
  17. snap — to click
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. race — the arms race
  20. charge — a price
  21. march — the month
  22. face — part of the head
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. face — to point toward

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