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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. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. mate — a friend
  3. land — a country
  4. drill — army training
  5. bound — certain
  6. land — ground
  7. pit — a hole
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. bound — obliged
  10. mate — to breed
  11. ball — a dance
  12. capital — a city
  13. land — to come down
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. drill — the tool
  16. rash — hasty
  17. bound — tied together
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. mate — a partner
  20. capital — money
  21. ball — a great time
  22. rash — a series
  23. pit — in a race
  24. ball — a round shape

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