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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 124 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. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. rash — hasty
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. chair — a leader
  5. last — to go on
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. ball — a dance
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. last — finally
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. last — final
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. rule — government
  15. can — to be able to
  16. rash — a series
  17. ball — a great time
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. rule — a law
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. pitcher — a jug
  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