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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 sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. spell — letters
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. spell — a short time
  5. can — a tin
  6. drill — army training
  7. rash — a series
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. drill — a practice
  11. can — to be able to
  12. spell — magic
  13. drill — the tool
  14. rash — hasty
  15. object — to protest
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. capital — a city
  18. object — a thing
  19. rule — a law
  20. object — an aim
  21. can — a tin
  22. rule — government
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. capital — money

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