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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. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  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. march — the month
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. rule — government
  4. firm — a company
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. march — music
  7. spell — a short time
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. ground — crushed
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. shower — to wash
  12. spell — magic
  13. firm — steady
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. march — the month
  16. spell — letters
  17. firm — decided
  18. shower — rain
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. ground — the earth
  21. ground — a position
  22. rule — a law
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. rule — to rule out

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