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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. cell — in biology
  3. wound — an injury
  4. land — a country
  5. track — to keep track
  6. track — a path
  7. press — newspapers
  8. content — happy
  9. cell — a phone
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. content — the amount
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. press — a publisher
  14. land — to come down
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. firm — a company
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. track — a song
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. press — to push
  21. firm — steady
  22. wound — an injury
  23. firm — decided
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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