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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. pop — soda
  5. kick — in football
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. bulb — for light
  8. pop — to visit
  9. saw — the tool
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. saw — the tool
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. snap — to click
  15. pop — music
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — ground
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. trunk — of a tree

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