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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. bowl — a dish
  3. bark — to shout
  4. last — final
  5. last — finally
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. court — of law
  8. bark — a dog's sound
  9. land — a country
  10. court — of a king
  11. last — to go on
  12. land — to come down
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. mate — to breed
  16. mate — a partner
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. court — for sport
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. mate — a friend
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. jam — in traffic

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