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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. My mare is ________________ in color.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. land — to come down
  3. land — a country
  4. wound — an injury
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. land — ground
  7. cell — a phone
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. craft — a skill
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. face — part of the head
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bay — a horse colour
  14. face — to confront
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. stem — to come from
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. face — to point toward
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. craft — boats
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. cell — in biology

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