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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. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. plane — a tool
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. fine — high quality
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. chair — a leader
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. pop — to visit
  10. wake — a trail
  11. land — to come down
  12. squash — to crush
  13. pop — soda
  14. pop — music
  15. fine — all right
  16. squash — the sport
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. land — a country
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. mine — for digging

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