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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. lie — to recline
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. mine — for digging
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. rule — a law
  8. firm — decided
  9. rule — government
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. land — to come down
  15. land — a country
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. bat — the animal
  18. land — ground
  19. firm — a company
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. dip — to sink
  24. mine — belonging to me

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