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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. cap — a hat
  3. march — the month
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. season — in sport
  6. can — a tin
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. date — the fruit
  9. can — a tin
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. can — to be able to
  12. cap — of ice
  13. march — music
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. rule — government
  16. season — of the year
  17. cap — a lid
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. shower — to wash
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. march — the month
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. shower — rain
  24. deal — to handle

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