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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. firm — steady
  3. key — the most important part
  4. lean — to bend
  5. land — to come down
  6. pop — to visit
  7. land — a country
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. key — in music
  10. key — for a lock
  11. mug — a cup
  12. firm — a company
  13. pop — soda
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. cold — an illness
  16. lean — thin
  17. court — of a king
  18. cold — not warm
  19. land — ground
  20. mug — a face
  21. pop — music
  22. court — of law
  23. firm — decided
  24. court — for sport

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