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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. present — there
  3. land — ground
  4. firm — steady
  5. land — a country
  6. spring — the season
  7. pop — soda
  8. file — a tool
  9. firm — decided
  10. file — a line of people
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. present — the time now
  14. pop — to visit
  15. club — for dancing
  16. spring — a coil
  17. pop — music
  18. file — a document
  19. present — a gift
  20. club — for golf
  21. spring — of water
  22. club — a group
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. land — to come down

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