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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. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. face — part of the head
  3. chest — of your body
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. track — a path
  6. swing — to play on
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. swing — in golf
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. land — ground
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. track — a song
  13. shower — to wash
  14. chest — of your body
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. face — to confront
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. swing — music
  19. chest — a box
  20. track — to keep track
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. land — to come down
  23. shower — rain
  24. face — to point toward

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