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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. foot — a measure
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. bear — the animal
  8. field — a subject
  9. game — a match
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. land — ground
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. snap — to click
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. field — for sport
  20. land — to come down
  21. game — wild animals
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. field — farmland

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