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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. last — final
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. mine — for digging
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. last — to go on
  8. land — to come down
  9. mark — a trace
  10. land — a country
  11. land — ground
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. key — the most important part
  15. key — for a lock
  16. dip — to sink
  17. last — finally
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. stem — to come from
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. key — in music
  24. mark — a grade

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