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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. can — a tin
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. land — a country
  5. shower — to wash
  6. rash — a series
  7. can — a tin
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. can — to be able to
  12. land — to come down
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. wake — a trail
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. shower — rain
  17. land — ground
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. chair — a leader
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. rash — hasty

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