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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. When are we going to ________________?
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. land — to come down
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. spring — a coil
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. wound — an injury
  7. mark — a trace
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. land — ground
  10. spring — of water
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. stem — to come from
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. spring — the season
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. mark — a grade
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. wound — an injury
  22. pound — a weight
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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