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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 120 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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. current — of water
  3. current — happening now
  4. tear — from crying
  5. hand — help
  6. club — for golf
  7. mug — a cup
  8. club — a group
  9. land — to come down
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. club — for dancing
  13. mug — to rob
  14. perch — the fish
  15. current — electric
  16. mug — a face
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — to rip
  20. land — ground
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. hand — in cards
  24. pitcher — a jug

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