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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. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. land — ground
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. court — of law
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. shower — rain
  11. mark — a grade
  12. chair — a leader
  13. court — of a king
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. mark — a trace
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. land — to come down
  18. hand — in cards
  19. land — a country
  20. court — for sport
  21. hand — help
  22. chip — to eat
  23. chip — for betting
  24. shower — to wash

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