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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 116 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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. can — a tin
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. row — a line
  7. land — a country
  8. march — music
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. bore — to drill
  11. chair — a leader
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. row — to paddle
  14. bore — to tire
  15. march — the month
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. can — to be able to
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. march — the month
  22. land — to come down
  23. can — a tin
  24. land — ground

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