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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 116 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. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. bound — tied together
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. saw — the tool
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. saw — the tool
  7. staff — a stick
  8. tear — from crying
  9. tear — from crying
  10. march — the month
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. tear — to rip
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. kick — in football
  15. march — the month
  16. bound — obliged
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. land — to come down
  19. staff — employees
  20. bound — certain
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. staff — employees
  23. march — music
  24. land — a country

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