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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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. land — a country
  3. mine — for digging
  4. row — to paddle
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. land — to come down
  7. stock — goods
  8. file — a line of people
  9. land — ground
  10. stock — shares
  11. prune — to trim
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. rock — a stone
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. file — a tool
  17. row — a line
  18. rock — music
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. prune — to trim
  24. leaves — to go away

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