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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. saw — the tool
  3. wind — moving air
  4. stem — to come from
  5. land — to come down
  6. capital — a city
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. capital — money
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. land — ground
  13. mug — a face
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. mug — a cup
  16. wind — moving air
  17. mug — to rob
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. ball — a great time
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. ball — a dance
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. land — a country

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