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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. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. spring — a coil
  4. can — a tin
  5. jam — a tight spot
  6. mark — a trace
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. mark — a grade
  11. roll — a list
  12. cold — an illness
  13. spring — of water
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. jam — to spread on bread
  16. rule — a law
  17. toast — bread
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. cold — not warm
  21. can — to be able to
  22. can — a tin
  23. spring — the season
  24. roll — a cake

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