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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. rock — music
  3. land — ground
  4. land — to come down
  5. rock — a stone
  6. chest — of your body
  7. cold — an illness
  8. mug — a cup
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. mug — to rob
  11. tube — a container
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. tube — the underground
  16. bear — the animal
  17. chest — a box
  18. chest — of your body
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. mug — a face
  21. cold — not warm
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. bear — the animal
  24. rock — to move gently

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