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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. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. toast — bread
  3. drill — army training
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. drill — a practice
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. game — a match
  9. content — the amount
  10. content — happy
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. land — ground
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. saw — the tool
  17. drill — the tool
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. game — wild animals
  21. toast — a drink to someone
  22. land — to come down
  23. saw — the tool
  24. kick — in football

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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