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

Word bank: wave · kid · mine · can · perch · rule · fall · cap

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. cap — of ice
  3. fall — to drop
  4. cap — a lid
  5. cap — a hat
  6. rule — government
  7. rule — a law
  8. fall — to drop
  9. mine — for digging
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. can — to be able to
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. kid — to tease
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. perch — the fish
  18. fall — the season
  19. can — a tin
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. kid — child
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. can — a tin
  24. rule — to rule out

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