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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. fork — in a road
  4. mug — to rob
  5. land — to come down
  6. scale — size or range
  7. mug — a cup
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. net — in sport
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. scale — in music
  12. dip — to sink
  13. tear — from crying
  14. mug — a face
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. net — after costs
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — to rip
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. land — ground
  24. net — for catching

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