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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. march — the month
  3. rule — government
  4. land — a country
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. tear — from crying
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. perch — the fish
  11. march — music
  12. land — ground
  13. tear — to rip
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. tear — from crying
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. land — to come down
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. march — the month
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. rule — to rule out

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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