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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. can — to be able to
  3. bat — the animal
  4. rule — government
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. rule — a law
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. fine — high quality
  10. fine — all right
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. mate — a partner
  15. mate — to breed
  16. mate — a friend
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. can — a tin
  20. branch — a division
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. wax — to grow
  23. mine — for digging
  24. wax — for sculpting

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