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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: march · season · cap · rule · drill · wound · deal · pop

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. pop — soda
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cap — a lid
  7. march — music
  8. pop — music
  9. rule — a law
  10. drill — a practice
  11. drill — army training
  12. cap — a hat
  13. season — in sport
  14. season — of the year
  15. deal — to handle
  16. wound — an injury
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. pop — to visit
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. march — the month
  21. drill — the tool
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. rule — government
  24. wound — an injury

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