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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. sharp — clever
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. rash — a series
  7. kid — child
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. spell — letters
  11. rash — hasty
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. spell — magic
  14. face — to point toward
  15. kid — to tease
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. spell — a short time
  18. vault — a safe
  19. face — to confront
  20. land — to come down
  21. land — ground
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. face — part of the head
  24. sharp — exactly

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