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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 120 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 King held a masked ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. ball — a dance
  3. prune — to trim
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. chair — a leader
  6. bound — tied together
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. hand — help
  9. bound — obliged
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. hand — in cards
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. bat — the animal
  15. bound — certain
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. land — ground
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. prune — to trim
  23. land — to come down
  24. ball — a great time

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