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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. wind — moving air
  3. mug — a cup
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. deal — to handle
  7. land — to come down
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. mine — for digging
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. mug — a face
  15. mug — to rob
  16. land — a country
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. land — ground
  19. wind — moving air
  20. season — in sport
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. season — of the year
  24. deal — a big deal

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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