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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. chair — a leader
  3. drill — a practice
  4. prune — to trim
  5. current — of water
  6. land — ground
  7. tear — from crying
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. drill — army training
  10. current — electric
  11. land — a country
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. current — happening now
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. fork — in a road
  17. prune — to trim
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. drill — the tool
  20. tear — from crying
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. tear — to rip
  24. safe — out of danger

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