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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. land — a country
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. land — to come down
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. march — the month
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. bark — to shout
  11. march — music
  12. key — the most important part
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. pound — a weight
  15. key — for a lock
  16. season — of the year
  17. key — in music
  18. land — ground
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. march — the month
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fine — high quality
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. season — in sport

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