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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.

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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. spring — the season
  4. cold — an illness
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. rash — a series
  7. rash — hasty
  8. march — music
  9. spring — of water
  10. fine — high quality
  11. cold — not warm
  12. rule — a law
  13. march — the month
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. fine — all right
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. march — the month
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. rule — government
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. fork — in a road
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. spring — a coil
  24. dip — to sink

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