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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. wake — a trail
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. land — to come down
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. mark — a grade
  9. file — a tool
  10. file — a line of people
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. spring — of water
  13. face — part of the head
  14. content — the amount
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. spring — a coil
  17. face — to point toward
  18. spring — the season
  19. content — happy
  20. mark — a trace
  21. land — ground
  22. file — a document
  23. face — to confront
  24. nail — for a hammer

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