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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. mine — for digging
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. land — a country
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. land — ground
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. root — of a plant
  12. kick — in football
  13. stock — shares
  14. root — of a word
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. root — the cause
  17. stock — goods
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. mine — an explosive

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