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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. ball — a dance
  3. can — a tin
  4. rule — a law
  5. can — a tin
  6. pit — a hole
  7. pit — in a race
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. scale — in music
  11. spell — a short time
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. kid — child
  14. spell — letters
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. scale — size or range
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. spell — magic
  20. rule — government
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. ball — a great time
  23. kid — to tease
  24. chair — a leader

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