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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. land — ground
  3. staff — employees
  4. craft — a skill
  5. net — for catching
  6. rest — what's left
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. court — of law
  9. staff — employees
  10. land — a country
  11. staff — a stick
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. net — in sport
  15. craft — boats
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. row — a line
  18. court — for sport
  19. net — after costs
  20. row — to paddle
  21. rest — a break
  22. court — of a king
  23. craft — a handicraft
  24. rest — what's left

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