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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. present — the time now
  5. mark — a grade
  6. present — there
  7. cell — a phone
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. land — ground
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. mark — a trace
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. bowl — a football final
  16. present — a gift
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. land — to come down
  19. craft — a skill
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. bowl — a dish
  22. cell — in biology
  23. bat — the animal
  24. craft — boats

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