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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. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. tear — to rip
  3. press — a publisher
  4. row — to paddle
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. press — to push
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. land — to come down
  11. land — ground
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. row — a line
  14. club — for dancing
  15. club — a group
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. tear — from crying
  22. press — newspapers
  23. club — for golf
  24. tear — from crying

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