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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 120 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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. ball — a great time
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. mug — a face
  5. land — a country
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. mug — a cup
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. bat — the animal
  11. land — to come down
  12. chip — to eat
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. ball — a dance
  15. stock — goods
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. stock — shares
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. mug — to rob
  21. deal — to handle
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. chip — for betting
  24. ball — a round shape

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