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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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. foot — a measure
  3. land — ground
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. hand — help
  6. wax — to grow
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. hand — in cards
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. bear — the animal
  17. rule — government
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. land — to come down
  21. land — a country
  22. mine — for digging
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. rule — a law

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