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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. march — the month
  4. spell — magic
  5. spell — letters
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. fine — high quality
  13. wind — moving air
  14. fork — in a road
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. rash — hasty
  18. spell — a short time
  19. march — music
  20. rule — government
  21. wind — moving air
  22. march — the month
  23. rule — a law
  24. fine — all right

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