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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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. land — a country
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. chip — for betting
  7. land — to come down
  8. row — a line
  9. land — ground
  10. court — of law
  11. court — for sport
  12. march — the month
  13. march — the month
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. court — of a king
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. row — to paddle
  20. vault — a safe
  21. chip — to eat
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. nail — on a finger

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