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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. march — the month
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. toast — bread
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. rule — government
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. kick — in football
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. mate — a partner
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. rule — a law
  15. bark — to shout
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. march — the month
  18. bore — to drill
  19. cold — an illness
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mate — a friend
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. march — music
  24. bore — to tire

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