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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. row — to paddle
  3. capital — money
  4. shower — rain
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. saw — the tool
  7. saw — the tool
  8. track — a path
  9. track — a song
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. march — the month
  12. track — to keep track
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. rule — a law
  17. shower — to wash
  18. rule — government
  19. march — the month
  20. capital — a city
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. march — music
  24. row — a quarrel

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