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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. pound — a weight
  4. can — a tin
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. bulb — for light
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. mark — a trace
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. bulb — for light
  11. squash — the sport
  12. can — a tin
  13. roll — a cake
  14. can — to be able to
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. squash — to crush
  19. mark — a grade
  20. land — to come down
  21. roll — a list
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. land — a country
  24. roll — on a roll

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