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

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. land — ground
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. content — happy
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. foot — a measure
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. cold — not warm
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. cold — an illness
  14. content — the amount
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. land — to come down
  18. bay — a part of the sea

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