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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. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. land — a country
  3. land — ground
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. present — a gift
  6. bear — the animal
  7. land — to come down
  8. bear — the animal
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. court — for sport
  11. fall — the season
  12. court — of law
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. capital — money
  16. present — there
  17. capital — a city
  18. court — of a king
  19. kick — in football
  20. present — the time now
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. foot — a measure
  23. fall — to drop
  24. fall — to drop

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