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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — a country
  3. squash — the sport
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. land — to come down
  6. kick — in football
  7. face — to confront
  8. rock — music
  9. rock — a stone
  10. perch — the fish
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. face — to point toward
  13. net — for catching
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. squash — to crush
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. net — in sport
  18. last — final
  19. last — finally
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. last — to go on
  22. net — after costs
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. face — part of the head

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