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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 · march · rule · kid · game · cap · row · stick

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. row — to paddle
  3. kid — child
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. rule — a law
  6. cap — a hat
  7. march — the month
  8. cap — of ice
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. game — wild animals
  12. row — a line
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. rule — government
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. kid — to tease
  17. cap — a lid
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. march — music
  24. game — a match

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