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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: snap · ground · cabinet · can · jam · march · land · chair

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. march — music
  3. can — a tin
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. ground — a position
  8. land — ground
  9. march — the month
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. chair — a leader
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. snap — to click
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. can — a tin
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. land — a country
  19. ground — the earth
  20. can — to be able to
  21. march — the month
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. land — to come down

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