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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. scale — in music
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. mug — a face
  7. scale — size or range
  8. land — ground
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. mug — a cup
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. saw — the tool
  16. snap — to click
  17. capital — a city
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. capital — money
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. land — to come down
  22. saw — the tool
  23. mug — to rob
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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