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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. can — a tin
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. can — to be able to
  8. kid — child
  9. rule — government
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. race — a contest
  12. race — humankind
  13. band — a ring
  14. race — the arms race
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. kid — to tease
  17. band — a music group
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. march — the month
  21. rule — a law
  22. can — a tin
  23. march — the month
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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