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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. perch — the fish
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. face — to confront
  7. land — a country
  8. land — to come down
  9. shower — rain
  10. mine — for digging
  11. board — a committee
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. shower — to wash
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. face — to point toward
  22. face — part of the head
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. board — to get on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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