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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. foot — a measure
  7. land — to come down
  8. court — of law
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. court — of a king
  17. stem — to come from
  18. perch — the fish
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. land — ground
  22. court — for sport
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. foot — the bottom

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