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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 120 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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. march — music
  3. cap — a lid
  4. can — to be able to
  5. stock — shares
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. prune — to trim
  9. march — the month
  10. cap — of ice
  11. land — to come down
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. land — ground
  15. prune — to trim
  16. cap — a hat
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. stock — goods
  19. can — a tin
  20. march — the month
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. can — a tin

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