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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. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. march — the month
  5. rest — what's left
  6. degree — an amount
  7. drill — the tool
  8. rule — a law
  9. drill — a practice
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. march — the month
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. rest — what's left
  15. rule — government
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. degree — from a university
  18. march — music
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. drill — army training
  21. degree — temperature
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bat — the animal

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