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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. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. degree — an amount
  3. degree — from a university
  4. degree — temperature
  5. land — ground
  6. tear — from crying
  7. track — to keep track
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. toast — bread
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. tear — from crying
  12. net — in sport
  13. net — for catching
  14. snap — to click
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. land — to come down
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. tear — to rip
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. track — a song
  23. track — a path
  24. net — after costs

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