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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. land — ground
  3. mug — a face
  4. spell — magic
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. spell — letters
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. net — after costs
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. net — in sport
  12. mug — a cup
  13. rush — hurry
  14. net — for catching
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. land — a country
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. mug — to rob
  20. spell — a short time
  21. ball — a great time
  22. land — to come down
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. ball — a round shape

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