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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 116 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. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. land — a country
  4. court — of a king
  5. mate — a partner
  6. tear — to rip
  7. row — a line
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. mate — a friend
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. row — to paddle
  14. land — ground
  15. pound — a weight
  16. last — to go on
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. tear — from crying
  19. last — finally
  20. land — to come down
  21. last — final
  22. mate — to breed
  23. court — of law
  24. tear — from crying

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