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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. track — a path
  3. press — a publisher
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. track — a song
  7. craft — a skill
  8. pitch — completely
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. press — to push
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. land — ground
  13. ground — a position
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. plane — a tool
  16. press — newspapers
  17. land — to come down
  18. craft — boats
  19. ground — the earth
  20. ground — crushed
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. track — to keep track
  24. plane — in geometry

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