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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. spring — a coil
  4. spring — the season
  5. land — ground
  6. land — a country
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. dip — to sink
  9. lie — to recline
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. mate — to breed
  12. chair — a leader
  13. spring — of water
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. land — to come down
  17. chip — for betting
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. chip — to eat
  21. net — after costs
  22. net — for catching
  23. mate — a partner
  24. mate — a friend

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