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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. pop — soda
  3. fork — in a road
  4. chest — of your body
  5. pop — music
  6. bear — the animal
  7. game — a match
  8. craft — a skill
  9. land — to come down
  10. game — wild animals
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. chest — a box
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. land — a country
  16. bear — the animal
  17. pop — to visit
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. chest — of your body
  21. craft — boats
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. bear — to put up with

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