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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 120 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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. tube — the underground
  4. fine — high quality
  5. land — a country
  6. band — a ring
  7. band — a music group
  8. last — final
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. pound — a weight
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. kid — child
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. fine — all right
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. tube — a container
  19. kid — to tease
  20. last — finally
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. last — to go on
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — ground

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