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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. chest — a box
  3. land — a country
  4. season — of the year
  5. land — to come down
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — of your body
  9. can — a tin
  10. race — humankind
  11. season — in sport
  12. race — the arms race
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. bore — to tire
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. bore — to drill
  17. can — a tin
  18. race — a contest
  19. shower — to wash
  20. shower — rain
  21. land — ground
  22. firm — a company
  23. can — to be able to
  24. firm — steady

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