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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. land — a country
  3. land — ground
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. can — a tin
  6. last — to go on
  7. clip — for paper
  8. can — a tin
  9. last — final
  10. clip — to cut
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. can — to be able to
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. wake — a trail
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. clip — a video
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. land — to come down
  24. last — finally

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