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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. rock — music
  4. land — a country
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. chip — for betting
  7. spring — the season
  8. spring — a coil
  9. prune — to trim
  10. chip — to eat
  11. prune — to trim
  12. saw — the tool
  13. rule — government
  14. rock — a stone
  15. march — the month
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. rule — a law
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. land — ground
  20. march — music
  21. march — the month
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. spring — of water
  24. land — to come down

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