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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. club — for golf
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. land — ground
  5. saw — the tool
  6. pit — in a race
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. drill — a practice
  9. drill — the tool
  10. club — for dancing
  11. face — part of the head
  12. face — to point toward
  13. pit — a hole
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. club — a group
  16. bat — the animal
  17. land — to come down
  18. face — to confront
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. lie — to recline
  22. saw — the tool
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. drill — army training

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