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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. When was this ________________ built?
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. present — a gift
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. mine — for digging
  7. rock — music
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. rock — a stone
  10. shower — rain
  11. cell — a phone
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. cell — in biology
  16. present — the time now
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. land — ground
  20. shower — to wash
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. land — to come down
  24. present — there

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