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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 116 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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. row — a line
  5. bat — the animal
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. row — to paddle
  8. land — to come down
  9. wind — moving air
  10. current — electric
  11. stock — shares
  12. land — ground
  13. wind — moving air
  14. current — happening now
  15. current — of water
  16. vault — a safe
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. stock — goods
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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