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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. land — ground
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. last — finally
  7. march — the month
  8. ground — crushed
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. march — music
  11. ground — a position
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. last — to go on
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. row — to paddle
  17. ground — the earth
  18. stem — to come from
  19. row — a line
  20. march — the month
  21. land — to come down
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. last — final
  24. lie — to recline

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