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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: squash · cap · last · bark · fan · rule · wake · court

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cap — of ice
  3. last — to go on
  4. rule — government
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. last — finally
  7. squash — the sport
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. wake — a trail
  11. squash — to crush
  12. court — of a king
  13. rule — a law
  14. court — for sport
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. bark — to shout
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. cap — a hat
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. court — of law
  21. last — final
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. bark — of a tree

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