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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. saw — the tool
  4. key — for a lock
  5. land — a country
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. last — finally
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. field — farmland
  11. last — final
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. field — for sport
  14. last — to go on
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. land — to come down
  17. rash — a series
  18. rash — hasty
  19. field — a subject
  20. saw — the tool
  21. lie — to recline
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. key — in music
  24. key — the most important part

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