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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. rest — what's left
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. land — to come down
  7. prune — to trim
  8. rest — a break
  9. current — electric
  10. land — ground
  11. prune — to trim
  12. current — happening now
  13. kid — to tease
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. current — of water
  16. capital — a city
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. kid — child
  19. capital — money
  20. rest — what's left
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. snap — to click
  24. straw — a straw man

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