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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. mate — a partner
  4. hand — help
  5. land — a country
  6. mate — to breed
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. mark — a grade
  9. fall — the season
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. ground — a position
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. fall — to drop
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. land — ground
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. mark — a trace
  18. mate — a friend
  19. craft — boats
  20. ground — the earth
  21. ground — crushed
  22. craft — a skill
  23. hand — in cards
  24. fall — to drop

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