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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. spring — of water
  3. content — the amount
  4. spring — a coil
  5. pit — a hole
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. sharp — clever
  9. pit — in a race
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. spring — the season
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. saw — the tool
  16. content — happy
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. land — ground
  21. land — to come down
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. saw — the tool
  24. sharp — with an edge

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