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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. clip — to cut
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. clip — a video
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. land — ground
  15. fine — high quality
  16. board — to get on
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. board — a committee
  19. fine — all right
  20. land — to come down
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. clip — for paper

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