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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. stock — goods
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. stock — shares
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. face — to confront
  13. face — to point toward
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. land — a country
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. land — ground
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. face — part of the head
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. calf — a young animal

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