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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. march — the month
  3. chest — of your body
  4. row — to paddle
  5. rule — government
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. can — to be able to
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. march — music
  13. rule — a law
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. bore — to tire
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. can — a tin
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. bore — to drill
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. row — a line
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. can — a tin

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