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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. net — in sport
  3. land — a country
  4. net — after costs
  5. vault — a safe
  6. perch — the fish
  7. land — ground
  8. land — to come down
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. firm — a company
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. ground — the earth
  13. ground — crushed
  14. ground — a position
  15. drill — a practice
  16. drill — army training
  17. net — for catching
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. firm — steady
  20. drill — the tool
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. firm — decided
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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