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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 120 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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. When will it ________________ you to start?
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. ground — crushed
  3. chest — a box
  4. ball — a great time
  5. land — a country
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. perch — the fish
  11. ground — a position
  12. suit — in cards
  13. chest — of your body
  14. hand — help
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. ground — the earth
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. land — to come down
  20. ball — a dance
  21. suit — clothes
  22. hand — in cards
  23. suit — to fit
  24. chest — of your body

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