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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. suit — clothes
  3. mine — for digging
  4. land — to come down
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. prune — to trim
  16. land — a country
  17. land — ground
  18. suit — in cards
  19. suit — to fit
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. shower — rain
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. racket — for tennis

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