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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 ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. land — ground
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. object — a thing
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. object — an aim
  8. land — to come down
  9. wound — an injury
  10. land — a country
  11. wake — a trail
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. hand — help
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. bear — the animal
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. wound — an injury
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. object — to protest
  22. bear — the animal
  23. hand — in cards
  24. nail — for a hammer

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