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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'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. land — a country
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. clip — a video
  8. hand — in cards
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. march — music
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. land — to come down
  13. firm — decided
  14. firm — a company
  15. march — the month
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. hand — help
  19. land — ground
  20. march — the month
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. clip — to cut
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. clip — for paper

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