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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. land — to come down
  4. perch — the fish
  5. firm — decided
  6. firm — a company
  7. spring — the season
  8. tear — from crying
  9. land — ground
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. spring — of water
  13. bulb — for light
  14. row — to paddle
  15. tear — to rip
  16. bulb — for light
  17. row — a line
  18. tear — from crying
  19. spring — a coil
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. firm — steady
  24. perch — for a bird

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