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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. cap — a hat
  3. can — a tin
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. cap — of ice
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. can — to be able to
  12. land — a country
  13. land — ground
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. rule — a law
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. cap — a lid
  18. march — the month
  19. march — music
  20. rule — government
  21. can — a tin
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. sharp — clever
  24. march — the month

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