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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. pop — music
  6. cell — in biology
  7. hand — help
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. pop — to visit
  10. press — newspapers
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. press — a publisher
  13. hand — in cards
  14. fork — in a road
  15. press — to push
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. shower — rain
  18. land — a country
  19. shower — to wash
  20. cell — a phone
  21. land — to come down
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. stand — to bear
  24. pop — soda

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