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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'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — a country
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. firm — decided
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. kid — child
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. kid — to tease
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. stem — to come from
  14. wound — an injury
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. saw — the tool
  18. saw — the tool
  19. wound — an injury
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. firm — steady
  23. land — to come down
  24. firm — a company

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