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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 play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. My father caught me by the ________________.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. roll — a cake
  4. toast — the most admired
  5. field — for sport
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. land — ground
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. land — to come down
  11. bass — low music
  12. roll — a list
  13. field — farmland
  14. chair — a leader
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. toast — bread
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. bass — the fish
  21. field — a subject
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. temple — side of the head

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