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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. last — finally
  5. cap — a lid
  6. rush — hurry
  7. land — a country
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. cap — a hat
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — final
  12. spell — magic
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. ball — a great time
  16. ball — a dance
  17. wake — a trail
  18. cap — of ice
  19. spell — letters
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. land — to come down
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. spell — a short time
  24. nail — for a hammer

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