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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. mug — a face
  3. land — a country
  4. present — there
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. present — the time now
  8. chest — of your body
  9. ball — a dance
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. land — to come down
  12. wound — an injury
  13. mug — to rob
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. chest — a box
  16. chest — of your body
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. capital — money
  19. wound — an injury
  20. capital — a city
  21. present — a gift
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. mug — a cup
  24. ball — a great time

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