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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. land — ground
  3. pop — music
  4. roll — a cake
  5. land — a country
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. saw — the tool
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. file — a document
  11. pop — to visit
  12. file — a line of people
  13. saw — past of 'see'
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. pitch — completely
  17. file — a tool
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. pop — soda
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. roll — a list
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. saw — the tool
  24. roll — on a roll

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