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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. rule — a law
  4. march — music
  5. march — the month
  6. rule — government
  7. march — the month
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. fork — in a road
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. bank — of a river
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bank — for money
  15. file — a line of people
  16. file — a document
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. file — a tool
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. bank — for money
  24. date — the fruit

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