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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. bark — to shout
  3. wind — moving air
  4. club — a group
  5. wound — an injury
  6. club — for golf
  7. staff — employees
  8. rock — music
  9. club — for dancing
  10. land — to come down
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. key — the most important part
  14. land — ground
  15. staff — employees
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. key — for a lock
  18. key — in music
  19. staff — a stick
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. rock — a stone
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wound — an injury
  24. rock — to move gently

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