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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. club — for dancing
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. face — to point toward
  5. club — for golf
  6. mine — for digging
  7. club — a group
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. face — to confront
  10. land — ground
  11. bat — the animal
  12. rock — a stone
  13. face — part of the head
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. ground — a position
  16. ground — crushed
  17. land — a country
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. rock — music
  20. land — to come down
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. ground — the earth
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. bat — in an idiom

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