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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. can — to be able to
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. land — a country
  6. stem — to come from
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. rule — government
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. rule — a law
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. land — ground
  14. can — a tin
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. land — to come down
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. can — a tin
  24. deal — to handle

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