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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. cap — a hat
  3. content — the amount
  4. rule — government
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. race — a contest
  7. march — music
  8. land — to come down
  9. content — happy
  10. row — to paddle
  11. land — a country
  12. cap — of ice
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. cap — a lid
  15. can — a tin
  16. land — ground
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — the arms race
  19. march — the month
  20. can — to be able to
  21. can — a tin
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. march — the month
  24. rule — a law

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