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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. fork — in a road
  3. cue — a signal
  4. kid — to tease
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. chest — a box
  10. cue — for pool
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. land — ground
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. land — to come down
  17. branch — a division
  18. chest — of your body
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. chest — of your body
  22. kid — child
  23. perch — the fish
  24. cue — a hint

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