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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 116 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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. land — to come down
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. rest — what's left
  6. firm — a company
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. land — a country
  9. degree — temperature
  10. deal — to handle
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. land — ground
  15. rest — a break
  16. degree — an amount
  17. rest — what's left
  18. firm — steady
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. degree — from a university
  21. stock — goods
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. mine — for digging
  24. stock — shares

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