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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. rule — government
  3. can — a tin
  4. field — a subject
  5. shower — rain
  6. can — to be able to
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. rule — a law
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. pit — in a race
  11. dip — to sink
  12. net — for catching
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. shower — to wash
  15. net — after costs
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. field — for sport
  18. march — music
  19. net — in sport
  20. march — the month
  21. field — farmland
  22. pit — a hole
  23. march — the month
  24. dip — to dunk

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