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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. land — a country
  3. cap — a lid
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. cap — a hat
  7. hand — in cards
  8. fork — in a road
  9. stem — to come from
  10. pitch — completely
  11. net — for catching
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. hand — help
  15. net — in sport
  16. net — after costs
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. kid — child
  19. cap — of ice
  20. kid — to tease
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. land — to come down
  23. land — ground
  24. stem — a stem cell

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