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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. rule — government
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. wake — a trail
  5. toast — bread
  6. march — the month
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. cold — an illness
  9. march — the month
  10. cell — a phone
  11. cell — in biology
  12. cold — not warm
  13. march — music
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. bulb — for light

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