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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. saw — the tool
  3. degree — an amount
  4. sharp — clever
  5. saw — the tool
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. degree — temperature
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. land — to come down
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. degree — from a university
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. land — ground
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. row — to paddle
  22. row — a line
  23. deal — to handle
  24. deal — an agreement

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