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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. clip — a video
  4. bore — to drill
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. root — the cause
  7. land — a country
  8. kick — in football
  9. clip — to cut
  10. bore — to tire
  11. root — of a word
  12. clip — for paper
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. perch — the fish
  16. stand — to bear
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. land — ground
  19. land — to come down
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. root — of a plant
  24. stand — for spectators

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