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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. capital — money
  3. deal — to handle
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. capital — a city
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. dip — to sink
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. band — a ring
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. bear — the animal
  17. game — wild animals
  18. game — a match
  19. band — a music group
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. bear — the animal
  22. land — to come down
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. land — a country

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