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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. wind — moving air
  5. last — finally
  6. bound — obliged
  7. land — ground
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. craft — a skill
  10. craft — boats
  11. scale — size or range
  12. season — of the year
  13. land — to come down
  14. last — to go on
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. bound — tied together
  19. season — in sport
  20. bound — certain
  21. wind — moving air
  22. last — final
  23. scale — in music
  24. craft — a handicraft

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